Four years ago, the United Nations General Assembly met in a special session and
unanimously committed itself to addressing the scourge of HIV/AIDS.

In the course of the past decade, the world has made considerable progress in the fight
against AIDS. It has also made considerable promises. The time has come to keep them. And
I believe we can.

Statement by UNAIDS Executive Director Dr Peter Piot, New York, 31st May 2006

Statement by UNAIDS Executive Director Dr Peter Piot, New York, 2 June 2006

This conference happens in a fundamentally different context from all other conferences. I truly believe that, for the first time there is a real chance that we will get ahead of the epidemic. And this momentum has its roots in both the science and the activism of this last decade. Our challenge remains: how to raise action on both fronts to the level we need to achieve full success.

On this World AIDS Day we are filled with both hope and concern. Hope because significant progress has been made towards universal access. New HIV infections have dropped. Fewer children are born with HIV. And more than 4 million people are on treatment.

Geneva, 8 March, 2010 – I pay tribute to women all over the world who have tirelessly supported the AIDS response—grandmothers, mothers, wives, sisters and daughters. The impact of AIDS would have been even more severe without their resilience, contributions and sacrifices.