GENEVA, 27 June 2018—UNAIDS welcomes the announcement by the Government of Australia confirming an additional AUD 1.3 million (almost US$ 1 million) for the AIDS response. The additional funding, announced at the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board meeting on 26 June 2018, will be used to scale up HIV prevention in Cambodia, Indonesia, the Lao People’s Democratic Republic and Papua New Guinea. The funds will add to the AUD 4.5 million (US$ 3.3 million) annual contribution to UNAIDS that Australia has pledged for the next five years.

“Australia is a leading advocate in the AIDS response in Asia and the Pacific,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “This additional contribution is an important signal at a time when we need more energy and action in HIV prevention to ensure that everyone, particularly people at higher risk of HIV, can protect themselves against the virus.”

In 2016, around 5.1 million adults and children were estimated to be living with HIV in the Asia–Pacific region, some 270 000 people became newly infected with the virus and 170 000 people died of AIDS-related illnesses. Just under half (47%) of all people living with HIV in the Asia–Pacific region had access to antiretroviral therapy in 2016.

Fully funding the work of the UNAIDS Joint Programme is critical to ending the AIDS epidemic and achieving UNAIDS’ vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths.

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

GENEVA, 19 June 2018—UNAIDS expresses its sincere appreciation to Denmark for its long-standing support and welcomes its decision to increase its core contributions to UNAIDS. Denmark will increase its contribution to UNAIDS to US$ 6.5 million in 2018 (from 30 million kroner in 2017 to 40 million kroner in 2018). 

“UNAIDS is stepping up its work on achieving gender equality, stopping gender-based violence and fulfilling the sexual and reproductive health and rights of women and girls, all of which are critical to ending AIDS,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “This important increase in Denmark’s contributions to UNAIDS will significantly help advance our shared commitment to put women at the centre of the response to HIV.”  

Denmark is one of the leading donors to UNAIDS and is championing efforts towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals. By supporting UNAIDS’ work in countries to end the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat by 2030, Denmark is continuing to advance progress in achieving a healthier and more equitable future for all.

“UNAIDS is paramount to ending AIDS as a global health threat, with its strong advocacy role and high standard on data collection and dissemination,” said Ulla Tørnæs, Danish Minister for Development Cooperation. “Denmark’s increased support for UNAIDS goes hand in hand with our strong emphasis on human rights and gender equality, including the advancement of sexual and reproductive health and rights for all, as core to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals.”

Fully funding the work of the UNAIDS Joint Programme is critical to ending the AIDS epidemic and achieving UNAIDS’ vision of zero new HIV infections, zero AIDS-related deaths and zero discrimination.

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

GENEVA, 5 June 2018—UNAIDS has launched its new Gender Action Plan for 2018–2023. The plan builds on the progress achieved under the 2013–2018 plan, which provided a framework to advance gender equality and empower women across the UNAIDS Secretariat.

Some 54% of UNAIDS staff are women and the UNAIDS Secretariat has achieved gender parity among staff at the P4 level (middle management) and above. The highest rise in women in leadership positions has been among UNAIDS country directors—in 2018, women accounted for 48% of UNAIDS country directors, up from 23% in 2013. UNAIDS has also developed a unique Women’s Leadership Programme and a Mentoring Programme for Women.

“The Gender Action Plan goes beyond parity—It’s about empowerment and it’s about rights,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “Staff are the greatest resource of the United Nations and I commit to ensuring the resources, the programmes and the support to empower all UNAIDS staff to improve the lives of people living with and affected by HIV.”

UNAIDS has performed consistently well within the United Nations System-Wide Action Plan on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women and is recognized as the only United Nations entity to have achieved full compliance with all 15 performance indicators.

The new plan seeks to build on this progress, while establishing new and more ambitious targets. “The UNAIDS Gender Action Plan is a tool for change,” said Gunilla Carlsson, Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS. “A tool to help create a workplace that maximizes the positive power of equality and diversity, where women and men are empowered to pursue a fulfilling career, free of discrimination and harassment of any kind. I am proud to launch it as part of the UNAIDS five-point plan to prevent and address all forms of harassment within UNAIDS.”

The UNAIDS Gender Action Plan sets out four targets:

• Target 1: 50:50 gender parity across all staff levels and categories.
• Target 2: 100% of staff at all levels set a work and learning objective on gender.

• Target 3: 100% of eligible UNAIDS female staff to participate in the UNAIDS Women’s Leadership Programme and 100% of eligible UNAIDS staff to participate in the Mentoring Programme for Women.
• Target 4: 100% compliance with the United Nations System-Wide Action Plan on Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women 2.0 framework.

To reach these targets and achieve an organizational culture that fully upholds gender equality and diversity, the UNAIDS Secretariat will be carrying out regular and transparent reporting to all staff on the progress and challenges, while also reporting to its Programme Coordinating Board.

A Challenge Group will be created, composed of staff from across the organization, which will be tasked with pushing progress forward and holding UNAIDS’ leadership accountable for the successful implementation of the plan.

Through the implementation of the Gender Action Plan 2018–2023, UNAIDS will continue to lead the way in accelerating gender equality and empowering every staff member to live up to their full potential.

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

GENEVA, 17 May 2018—On HIV Vaccine Awareness Day, 18 May, UNAIDS is calling for an increase in research and investment to find an effective vaccine to protect people against HIV and stop new HIV infections. In 2016, around 1.8 million people were newly infected with HIV and although the number of new infections has declined in recent years, the world is still far from achieving the UNAIDS Fast-Track Target of reducing new HIV infections to fewer than 500 000 by 2020.

“New HIV infections are not declining fast enough and stopping infections must become a global priority,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “There are 36.7 million people living with HIV today, all in need of costly treatment for life, which will be difficult to sustain over the long term. To truly end AIDS, it is essential to find an effective HIV vaccine and a cure.” 

In mid-2017, more than half (20.9 million) of the 36.7 million people living with HIV had access to antiretroviral medicines to keep them alive and well. Over the next decade, efforts will be scaled up so that all people living with HIV can access the life-saving treatment. Without a cure or a therapeutic vaccine, millions of people will need to be sustained on lifelong treatment.

Promising steps have been made in recent years, with four large-scale trials currently under way and exciting developments in the pipeline. Innovative approaches to immunization are showing great promise in animal models and an ever-increasing array of highly potent broadly neutralizing antibodies have been discovered and can be engineered to persist in the human body so that we may one day be able to prevent HIV infection with a single injection each year.

Safe and effective vaccines have the potential to change the world. Some infectious diseases that were once commonplace, killing millions and leaving countless people with lifelong disabilities, have become rare. Smallpox has been eradicated, only 17 people developed polio in 2017 and in 2016 the Pan American Health Organization declared that measles had been eliminated from the Americas.

An effective, durable, affordable and safe vaccine for HIV would significantly advance efforts to end AIDS. For the past decade, investments have remained steady, at around US$ 900 million per year, which is less than 5% of the total resources needed for the AIDS response. By scaling up investments in HIV vaccine research, diversifying funding and attracting the best scientists from around the world, a vaccine for HIV could become a reality.

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

GENEVA, 16 May 2018—On the International Day against Homophobia, Transphobia and Biphobia (IDAHOT), UNAIDS is calling for strengthened partnerships to support lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex (LGBTI) people and their families living with or affected by HIV or facing discrimination.

“Stigma, discrimination and social and physical violence against sexual and gender minorities prevent them from accessing health services,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “Everyone has the right to health, no matter their gender or sexual orientation. For that, we need zero discrimination for everyone, everywhere.”

Gay men and other men who have sex with men and transgender women are among the populations most affected by HIV worldwide.

More than 40% of the 100 countries responding to UNAIDS criminalize same-sex relationships. Criminalizing people because of their gender or sexual orientation drives people underground and out of reach of essential health and social services, making them vulnerable to poor health and homelessness.

To end AIDS, it is essential to ensure that people can access HIV prevention technologies, including condoms and PrEP, and quality HIV treatment and care free from discrimination. UN Women, the United Nations Development Programme and UNAIDS are working with the Global Network of People Living with HIV to end all forms of HIV-related stigma and discrimination. The initiative will require rapid multisectoral support and civil society leadership and will contribute to achieving the time-bound commitments of United Nations Member States to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

Increasing political commitment and investments for the health and well-being of some of the most vulnerable people in society will help to ensure that no one is left behind.

IDAHOT, a worldwide celebration of sexual and gender diversity, is commemorated annually on 17 May. This year’s theme is alliances for solidarity to bring respect for LGBTI people and their families.

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

GENEVA/ISLAMABAD, 10 May 2018— UNAIDS congratulates the Parliament of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan on the passage of the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2018. The bill is transformational for transgender people who, in the past, either had to live with formal identification papers which did not accurately reflect their gender  or go without identity papers. The change in the law will enable transgender people to apply for a driver’s license and passport. They will also be able to apply to the National Database and Registration Authority to have their records changed to reflect their gender.  

Transgender people frequently face discrimination when they are required to use identity documents, such as driver’s license and passport, that do not match their gender identity or gender expression. Transgender people have been denied access to services or support, for example in health care settings, because they do not have official identity documents that recognize their gender identity or gender expression.

The new bill is very important for transgender people because it gives them legal protection. The groundbreaking changes provide access to rights previously denied to transgender people. They will now be entitled to inherit property, have the right to vote in all national, provincial and local government elections and to run for public office. All without fear of discrimination. The bill also allows for measures that are designed to meet the specific needs of transgender people. This includes the establishment of protection centres and safe houses and special vocational training programmes.   

“This bill provides an enabling environment for transgender people to access health care, social justice, equality and dignity in society while enjoying productive lives,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “This is a positive move that will support Pakistan in achieving the end of AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.”  

Transgender people have a HIV prevalence rate 7.1 percent in Pakistan.  Fifty-two percent of transgender people report facing stigma and discrimination. The figure increases to 55.8 percent for transgender sex workers.

The bill prohibits harassment of transgender people in the home and in public. It is now against the law for employers, educational institutions, health services, traders, public transport and property owners or sellers to discriminate transgender people in anyway.

“The passing of this bill is a dream come true for many transgender people,” said Bubbly Malik, Executive Director of the Wajood Society. “We have come a long way and fought hard to get this. We will not stop now. This is the first step towards empowerment.  We will be there to see its effective implementation. The bill addresses health, employment and educational services which makes me happy.” 

In June 2016, Member States of the United Nations committed in the Political Declaration on Ending AIDS to “promoting laws and policies that ensure the enjoyment of all human rights and fundamental freedoms for children, adolescents and young people, particularly those living with, at risk of and affected by HIV, so as to eliminate the stigma and discrimination that they face.”

UNAIDS urges all governments to fully implement the human rights of people living and affected by HIV, including by providing strong legal protections and implementing programmes to end discrimination and advance access to justice . 

GENEVA, 10 May 2018— During my recent visit to South Africa, I listened carefully to you, I heard you. The HIV epidemic is inextricably linked to sexual and gender-based violence and the two can never be separated. We need the passion of advocates to move issues forward.

Let us come together and address sexual harassment and gender inequality. A transformative agenda to address sexual harassment and gender inequality is urgent. Let us work together towards it, let us spend our time and energy on this important agenda.

Speaking truth to power is at the core of civil society existence, therefore civil society should never feel threatened to silence because of fear of loss of resources (financial and otherwise). You are an autonomous and critical contributor to the AIDS response, we must preserve that always. Women and men at UNAIDS, in all their diversity, appreciate the support of civil society for standing together with them in solidarity, and in support of women’s equality and rights.

Let us unite the HIV movement around these issues. Working together, we can define a vibrant movement that addresses the intersections between HIV, sexual harassment and gender inequality. In collaboration with you, I am calling for a women’s meeting in Africa to forge the way forward on ending sexual harassment.

I heard you. I listened to all of you. I will act.

Michel Sidibé
Executive Director of UNAIDS
Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

GENEVA, 7 May 2018—The scope and nature of the work of the Independent Expert Panel on prevention of and response to harassment, including sexual harassment, bullying and abuse of power at the UNAIDS Secretariat has been decided upon by the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board (PCB) Bureau following consultations with the three constituencies of the PCB. The PCB Bureau is composed of the United Kingdom, China, Algeria, the PCB nongovernmental organization delegation and the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, representing the UNAIDS Cosponsors. The agreed terms of reference will guide the panel’s work over the coming months.

Under the terms of reference, the panel will:

• Review the current situation in the UNAIDS Secretariat with regard to harassment, including sexual harassment, bullying and abuse of power and retaliation—including by looking back over the past seven years—to assess the organizational culture at headquarters and the regional and country offices.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of existing policies and procedures to prevent and address harassment, including sexual harassment, bullying, retaliation and abuse of power in the UNAIDS Secretariat workplace.
• Recommend a comprehensive set of prioritized measures on organizational culture, policies and fair and due process procedures with respect to harassment, including sexual harassment, and bullying, retaliation and abuse of power in the workplace.

The panel will review all relevant areas. It will look at UNAIDS’ leadership and culture, policies and strategies to prevent harassment and the reasons for the low levels of formal reporting of harassment. In addition, the panel will review the investigation processes applied by the UNAIDS Secretariat and will make recommendations on how to ensure that these are fit for purpose and fair. The panel will also make recommendations to ensure that the UNAIDS Secretariat has sufficiently strong internal systems to identify unacceptable behaviour and take swift action in response to it and will make recommendations to ensure that accountability is visible and ensured at all levels of UNAIDS.

In its work, the panel will draw from lessons learned and best practices from other United Nations organizations and other partners. The panel is independent of UNAIDS’ senior management and in its work will consult with United Nations Member States, PCB nongovernmental organizations, UNAIDS Cosponsors and former and current UNAIDS staff.

“I fully support the panel’s work and how the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board has conceptualized the panel as one composed of independent experts. I will provide whatever is needed to ensure that the Board leadership can continue to run a transparent process. I look forward to the panel’s report and pledge to swiftly implement its recommendations,” said Mr Sidibé.

Called for in February 2018 by Mr Sidibé, the panel is one of several measures designed to strengthen the culture of zero tolerance for harassment, abuse and unethical behaviour at UNAIDS. Other measures announced in February include the five-point plan, which aims to ensure that inappropriate behaviour and abuse of authority are identified early on, that measures taken are properly documented and that action to be taken follows due process and is swift and effective. The five-point plan also calls for enhanced protections for plaintiffs and whistle-blowers. The recommendations of the panel are expected to influence the implementation of the five-point plan.

The panel will comprise up to five independent experts. It will deliver its final report with its recommendations to the 43rd meeting of the PCB in December 2018.

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

GENEVA, 23 March 2018—Ahead of World TB Day 2018, UNAIDS is calling on all partners to take unprecedented and bold action to advance efforts to end tuberculosis (TB) and AIDS by 2030.

TB continues to be the top infectious killer worldwide, claiming more than 4500 lives a day. TB is also the leading cause of death among people living with HIV, causing one in three AIDS-related deaths. In 2016, 1.7 million people died from TB, including around 374 000 people living with HIV.

“The world has the resources to end the interlinked epidemics of tuberculosis and HIV, but political commitment and country action are lacking,” said Michel Sidibé, UNAIDS Executive Director. “Political, religious and civil society leaders need to step up to guarantee everyone the right to breathe, to live free from tuberculosis and AIDS.”

TB is preventable and curable; however, persistent challenges remain. Many of these challenges are also faced by the HIV response and can be effectively addressed if programmes are integrated. They include unequal access to services, with the most marginalized people still out of reach, the need to access education, housing and basic services to prevent, diagnose and treat TB and HIV through local health-care services and community health-care workers, the need to strengthen health systems and the urgent need to mobilize resources in programming, research and development.

To address the challenges and push forward the response to TB and HIV, UNAIDS has outlined five important actions for partners:

• Give a new impetus to the response to TB and HIV by impelling political, religious and civil society leaders to champion the universal right to live free from TB and HIV, building on existing rights and health and social movements.
• Empower communities to demand their right to health. Affected communities must call on governments to improve living standards, including by accessing nutritious food, breathing clean air, completing their education and fostering an enabling economic environment, all of which will help to reduce the burden of TB and HIV.
• Ensure rights-promoting and non-discriminatory service delivery for all, especially for people at higher risk of TB and HIV, such as children and marginalized populations, to protect them against catastrophic health expenditures in the context of universal health coverage. Thus, duty of care extends beyond health to include safe workplaces and places of detention.
• Engage ministers of finance to approach health as an investment, not an expenditure. While the above actions carry some financial outlays, assessments of returns on investment in health have demonstrated their long-term value to societies and economies. An efficient and effective response to HIV and TB will require working across all ministries and sectors to mobilize sufficient domestic financing to strengthen health systems.
• Innovate for new medicines and vaccines. Greater partnerships between the public and private sectors are urgently needed to accelerate innovation that leads to the discovery, development and rapid uptake of new tools to prevent and treat TB and HIV, as are strategies for shorter and less-toxic TB regimens.

Ending the global TB and HIV epidemics is possible. HIV is preventable and effective and affordable treatment is available. TB is preventable, treatable and in most cases curable.

Progress has been made—deaths from TB among people living with HIV declined by 37% between 2005 and 2016 as prevention, testing and treatment have improved and increased. However, there is still much more work to be done.

In September 2018, world leaders will come together at the United Nations in New York, United States of America, for the first-ever United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Tuberculosis. This meeting will be an important opportunity for countries to adopt a progressive, visionary and actionable political declaration on TB.

“The United Nations High-Level Meeting on Tuberculosis could provide the political, social and financial momentum needed to end TB,” said Mr Sidibé. “This year could be the most important since Robert Koch discovered the cause of TB136 years ago, but only if we all show leadership.” 

UNAIDS urges all partners to ensure that TB is elevated on global, regional, national and subnational political and social agendas, that TB and HIV are addressed in unison and that partners combine robust efforts to end TB and HIV by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals.

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.

Statement by UNAIDS on the occasion of the 61st Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs, Vienna, 15 March 2018

Madam President, excellencies, civil society partners and colleagues, thank you for this opportunity to address the 61st Session of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND).

UNAIDS recognizes that the overarching purpose of drug control is first and foremost to ensure the health, well-being and security of individuals, while respecting their human rights at all times. People who use and inject drugs are among the groups at highest risk of exposure to HIV, but remain marginalized and out of reach of health and social services.

Unfortunately, since our statement during the 60th Session of CND last year, the statistics on people who use drugs have not improved. Almost 12 million people worldwide inject drugs, of whom one in eight (1.6 million) are living with HIV and more than half (6.1 million) are living with hepatitis C.

A total of 1.3 million people are living with both hepatitis C and HIV—in other words, more than 80% of people who inject drugs and who are living with HIV are living with a coinfection. According to the 2017 World drugs report, there are now 222 000 hepatitis C related annual deaths and 60 000 AIDS-related deaths among people who inject drugs.

People who use drugs are 24 times more likely to be living with HIV than people in the general population, and among prisoners HIV prevalence is up to five times higher.

And while we are seeing the number of new HIV infections going down in almost all population groups, incidence among people who use drugs is going up. Global new HIV infections among people who inject drugs rose by 33% from 2011 to 2015.

The evidence on harm reduction is overwhelming. Harm reduction works—it works as treatment and as prevention, and it improves the health and social well-being of people and societies. To put it in simple terms, harm reduction saves lives.

Yet the coverage of harm reduction programmes remains insufficient.

We also know that policies that criminalize and marginalize people who inject drugs are failing to reduce new HIV infections.

Of 158 countries where injecting drug use is reported, over half (78) do not offer opioid substitution therapy and more than a third (68) still do not provide needle–syringe programmes.

Between 2010 and 2014, only 3.3% of HIV prevention funds went to programmes for people who inject drugs. This in spite of the fact that we know that harm reduction approaches that prioritize people’s health and human rights work and are cost-effective.

Evidence supports the need for a shift in the global approach to drug use. The UNAIDS report Do no harm: health, human rights and people who use drugs shows what works to reduce the impact of HIV and other harms related to drug use. Countries that have moved away from laws and policies that are harmful to people who use drugs and that have increased investment in harm reduction have reduced new HIV infections and improved health outcomes.

This is not a new message from UNAIDS. But it is a message that we will continue to share.

UNAIDS supports a people-centred, public health approach to reduce HIV, hepatitis C and other vulnerabilities among people who inject drugs. A comprehensive package of interventions, including needle–syringe programmes and opioid substitution therapy, provided in a legal and policy environment that enables access to services, prevents infections and reduces deaths from AIDS-related illnesses, tuberculosis, viral hepatitis and sexually transmitted infections.

And the social benefits exceed the treatment and prevention costs. Putting in place services without changing laws and policies will not work. Legal and policy reform must be based on evidence.

Ending punitive and repressive approaches and protecting health and human rights will guarantee greater access to services for the people most in need. It will also greatly reduce the harms of drug use. An enabling and legal environment must be accompanied by investments in evidence-informed services.

If the annual investment in harm reduction in low- and middle-income countries increases to US$ 1.5 billion by 2020, just a fraction of the estimated US$ 100 billion already spent each year to reduce the supply of and demand for narcotic drugs, we would be able to reach 90% of people who inject drugs with HIV prevention and harm reduction services.

As we implement the Sustainable Development Goals, harm reduction must be an integral component of universal health coverage.

Drug policies and programmes must be people-centred, evidence-informed and based on human rights. Extrajudicial killings and other violence against people who use drugs must end.

We call on all United Nations Member States to redouble their efforts to fulfil their commitments made in the 2016 Political Declaration on Ending AIDS and the Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly on the World Drug Problem outcome documents to intensify national efforts to end the AIDS epidemic and achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

We need approaches that put people at the centre and restore dignity to people who use drugs. We cannot end the AIDS epidemic if we do not end it among people who use drugs.

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.