UNAIDS mourns the death of former colleague Julia Cleves who lost her battle against cancer on Wednesday 5 September.

Joint International Health Partners Statement on behalf of the GAVI Alliance, Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria, Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), UNICEF, United Nations Population Fund, World Bank and the World Health Organization.

Alarmed by recent reports that people living with HIV have been buried alive in the Southern Highlands of Papua New Guinea, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) express their serious concerns that gross violations of human rights may have been committed against HIV positive people.

The newly published book ‘The Invisible Cure’ by Helen Epstein reminds us of the complex and multi-disciplinary challenges posed by the AIDS epidemic, as well as the critical role of communities in the response, but it also makes numerous inaccurate statements which require correction regarding the work of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).

New estimates produced from improved data collection methods give better understanding of AIDS epidemic in India

UNAIDS wishes to correct multiple mischaracterizations that appear in a book published by Radcliffe Publishing, entitled The AIDS Pandemic: the collision of epidemiology with political correctness by James Chin. These errors deal with the process and results of the estimations of the AIDS pandemic, made with technical assistance from the UNAIDS Secretariat and WHO.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) welcomes the release of the latest antenatal clinic survey by South Africa’s Department of Health. South Africa has produced one of the world’s most comprehensive antenatal clinic surveys. In 2006 over 33 000 pregnant women participating in government antenatal clinics were surveyed, compared to over 16 500 women in 2005.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) welcomes G8 leaders reaffirmation of their commitment to work towards the goal of universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support by 2010. UNAIDS also applauds the G8 announcement of a projected $US60 billion investment in AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria and the strengthening of health systems in Africa, as part of their work towards realizing the Millennium Development Goals. Current estimates show that for AIDS alone, around US$70 billion will be needed from 2008 – 2010 to enable universal access to be achieved globally.

In 2005, G8 leaders made unprecedented commitments on AIDS that led the international community to work towards the goal of ensuring universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support by the year 2010. Acting upon this, countries have made significant progress in setting ambitious targets to guide the acceleration of their national AIDS responses. However, as the G8 leaders meet this week in Heiligendamm, Germany for the 2007 Summit, UNAIDS remains concerned that commitments to reaching universal access will not be met at the current rate of progress.

As the world’s leaders prepare to meet this week for the annual G8 Summit, which will take place in Heiligendamm, Germany June 6–8, 2007, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the Kaiser Family Foundation are releasing a new report analyzing funding for AIDS in low- and middle- income countries provided by the G8 and other donor governments.