The High-Level Meeting on AIDS will take place from 8-10 June in New York.

The 26th African Union (AU) Summit has concluded in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, under the theme “2016: African Year of Human Rights with a particular focus on the rights of women.”  

Also discussed at the summit was Agenda 2063, a 50-year blueprint for Africa’s development adopted to mark the African Union’s 50th anniversary in 2013. UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé participated in the summit and met several African leaders, including the Prime Minister of Ethiopia, Hailemariam Desalegn.

Mr Sidibé also held bilateral meetings with the President of Ghana, John Dramani Mahama, the first Lady of Sudan, Wedad Babiker, and the President of the African Development Bank, Akinwumi Adesina.

The meeting closed with a ceremony to thank stakeholders who contributed to the African Union’s response to last year’s Ebola outbreak in western Africa.

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In the late 1990s, the Thai Government started offering free antiretroviral medicines to several thousand people. Apiwat Kwangkaew, currently Vice-Chair of the Thai Network for People Living with HIV, was one of the lucky ones.

“Twenty years ago I got really sick because of AIDS. I didn’t think I was going to make it,” said Mr Apiwat. Within a few months of starting treatment, he was healthy again.

“What was really tragic was that antiretroviral medicines existed, but my friends and other people living with HIV were not accessing them,” he said.

Because of that experience, ensuring access to HIV treatment has been his life’s passion. He is now one of Thailand’s better known advocates for people living with HIV.

Since the 1990s, the situation has vastly improved. In 2002, Thailand became one of the first members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to integrate HIV services into its universal health coverage scheme. Between 2010 and 2014, coverage of people living with HIV receiving antiretroviral medicines increased from 42% to 61%.

Suchada Chaivooth, Director of the HIV and Tuberculosis programme at the National Health Security Office, said that Thailand had found many benefits from this integration. “The government can negotiate a good price for antiretroviral medicines because it’s supplying a large number of people living with HIV,” she said.

Panya Shoosiri, a gardener from Amphur Thamai village in Chantaburi Province, central Thailand, is one of the many people accessing free antiretroviral medicines. He has been living with HIV for more than 15 years. His monthly income is about US$ 100. “All HIV services are covered by the national plan. It’s a big relief for me,” said Mr Panya.

In 2014, Thailand reached a new milestone, becoming the first country in ASEAN to offer free HIV treatment to people living with HIV regardless of their CD4 count, the measurement used to indicate how significantly the immune system has been affected by HIV. Previously, people who tested positive could only access antiretroviral medicines after their CD4 count had decreased to 350 cells/mm³.

“I campaigned hard for this development because I am sure it will save many lives,” said Mr Apiwat. “People living with HIV often only came back to the hospital when they were really sick and by then the antiretroviral medicines didn’t work so well and they were more likely to die,” he added.

Since the new guidelines went into effect, Thailand has seen enrolment on its HIV treatment programme increase by more than 30%.

During a visit to Bangkok, UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé said, “The AIDS response in Thailand and around the globe has a lot to offer the universal health-care movement.”

Mr Sidibé pointed out that the AIDS response has achieved one of the most remarkable expansions in modern history. In 2000, fewer than 1% of people living with HIV in low- and middle-income countries had access to treatment. The annual cost per person was sky high. As of June 2015, the global number reached 15.8 million people or 40% of the total number of people living with HIV around the world.

He emphasized so much has been achieved in such little time because the AIDS movement has prioritized people. From the early days of the epidemic civil society has played a key role in expanding access to HIV services.

In Thailand, the government earmarks funds for health-care facilities to team up with community groups. “Our HIV programme is one where hospitals work in partnership with community groups to provide prevention services, reaching key populations at higher risk of HIV and providing them with HIV testing and care,” said Ms Suchada. 

Egyptian actress and singer Yousra was appointed as a UNAIDS Regional Goodwill Ambassador for the Middle East and North Africa at an event held in Cairo, Egypt, on 31 January that brought together a wide range of key partners.

The Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, ministers, former ministers, ambassadors, policy-makers, people living with HIV, representatives of the private sector, civil society, United Nations agencies and academia, celebrities and the media came together for the event.

UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director Jan Beagle announced the regional goodwill ambassador appointment, underlining that Yousra, with her iconic status, will be a critical voice for UNAIDS and the AIDS response in the region, particularly in the lead-up to the High-Level Meeting on AIDS, to take place in June 2016 in New York, United States of America.

Ms Beagle stressed that Yousra will be a champion for the implementation and financing of the Arab AIDS Strategy. Her engagement will contribute significantly to ensuring a Fast-Track response to HIV in the region, towards the goal of ending AIDS by 2030.

Speaking at the event, Yousra emphasized her commitment to uniting people across sectors and to being a champion to advance the AIDS response in the region. She underlined the importance of eliminating stigma and discrimination against people living with and affected by HIV and of empowering women.  

In 2014, an estimated 240 000 people were living with HIV in the Middle East and North Africa region, which faces growing inequalities, rising migration, escalating humanitarian emergencies and discriminatory laws. To end the AIDS epidemic in the region, there is a strong need to address the determinants of these vulnerabilities and deliver holistic services free from stigma and discrimination to people living with and at risk of HIV. 

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Public health leaders and key stakeholders from around the world have come together at the Prince Mahidol Award Conference  to discuss how limited health resources can be used in the most cost-effective way to provide high-quality health care.

Her Royal Highness Princess Maha Chakri Sirindhorn opened the conference by saying it came at a key moment since it followed the adoption of the Sustainable Development Goals by countries late last year. The UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé delivered a keynote address speaking about the need for a paradigm shift, moving from a disease response to a people-centred approach.

The conference, which is taking place in Bangkok, Thailand from 26 to 31 January, is being held under the theme Priority Setting for Universal Health Coverage. It is welcoming more than 900 government officials, representatives of intergovernmental organizations, international development partners and researchers from around 50 countries.

Thailand is one of the countries that have succeeded in putting people at the centre of their universal health coverage plan. Thailand champions the scale-up of community-led services. The Bangkok Metropolitan Administration, for example, works closely with civil society and communities.

During his visit to Thailand, Mr Sidibé visited two community-led programmes with Ms. Pusadee Tamthai, the Deputy Governor of Bangkok. One was the Service Workers in Group Foundation, better known as SWING, which supports sex workers by providing screening for sexually-transmitted infections, HIV counselling, testing, treatment, care and support services.

Mr Sidibé also visited the Tangerine clinic, housed at the Thai Red Cross AIDS Research Center, which is the first clinic to offer comprehensive sexual health services to transgender people in Thailand. Mr Praphan Phanuphak, Director of the Research Center, is a pioneer in the AIDS movement and demonstrates how science, integrated into community work, brings health care to even the most marginalized people.

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Ahead of the United Nations High-Level Meeting on AIDS, which will take place in New York in June, the Organisation of African First Ladies against HIV/AIDS (OAFLA) has called for the response against the epidemic to be stepped up.   

Meeting in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, OAFLA First Ladies recognized the huge progress already made in reducing the impact of HIV, but warned against complacency, calling on stakeholders to increase investment in the response. The First Ladies said more resources were required to prevent new HIV infections among children and keep their mothers healthy and alive and to broaden access to testing services. They also said that increased resources were necessary in order to ensure that people access treatment immediately if need be, to allow young people, particularly young women and girls, to access combination prevention services, and to end gender-based violence, which increases the risk of HIV exposure.

Addressing the OAFLA General Assembly, UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé congratulated the First Ladies for playing a transformative role by championing social justice and keeping the issue of HIV high on the political agenda. He added that achieving zero mother-to-child transmission of the virus, reaching universal health access for children and ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 were possible if the right decisions were made now.

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As Malawi commences its term as a newly elected member of the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board (PCB), the President and First Lady have emphasized their commitment to leading the AIDS response in the country and ending AIDS by 2030.

The President and First Lady of Malawi expressed their commitment to Malawi's PCB membership, and to work towards a strong Political Declaration at the United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, which will take place in June 2016 Meeting, during discussions with UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director, Jan Beagle. Ms Beagle is visiting Malawi and meeting with stakeholders from the government, civil society and international partners to prepare the Malawi’s participation at the PCB for the 2016–2018 term and UN High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS.

In 2014, an estimated 1.1 million people were living with HIV in Malawi, the prevalence rate being 10%—one of the highest in east and southern Africa. However, Malawi is making significant strides in scaling up its response, including by being the first country in the region to officially endorse the 90–90–90 treatment target in its national strategic AIDS plan.

The results have been significant. According to latest national data, some 600 000 Malawians are estimated to be receiving antiretroviral therapy and the number of annual new HIV infections has been reduced from 89 000 in 2004 to 42 000 in 2014. Moreover, Malawi’s bold decision in 2011 to implement option B+, the approach that recommends starting treatment for pregnant and breastfeeding women living with HIV regardless of CD4 count, resulted in a sevenfold increase in the number of women initiated on antiretroviral therapy and a decrease of mother-to-child transmission of HIV by 66%, according to latest government data.

In discussions with Ms Beagle, President Arthur Peter Mutharika recognized the critical importance of UNAIDS’ support to ensuring that Malawi’s HIV response is supported by one of the largest grants made by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. President Mutharika also stressed that he looked forward to a strong outcome from the upcoming United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS.

The First Lady of Malawi, Gertrude Mutharika, reflected on the priorities for her country’s PCB membership and the High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS. The First Lady and Ms Beagle also discussed opportunities for leveraging her role as Vice-Chair of the Organisation of African First Ladies against AIDS to help enable the AIDS response in Malawi and beyond to be Fast-Tracked.

Welcoming Malawi to PCB membership, Ms Beagle commended Malawi on the political leadership shown by the early adoption of option B+, as well as the integration of the prevention targets in the national strategic plan, emphasizing that such examples of leadership can help ensure bold outcomes at the High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS in June.

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