Press release and statement archive

The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, along with the Government of Uganda; the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; UNAIDS; UNICEF; the World Bank; the World Health Organization; and the Global Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, is pleased to announce a call for abstracts for...

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) joined other UN agencies and the Secretary General in stating its shock at the tragic bombing of the UN offices in Algiers, and great sadness at the loss of life.

The World Bank with United Nations and private sector partners today launched a competitive Development Marketplace aimed at identifying and funding innovative approaches to reduce stigma and discrimination associated with HIV and AIDS in the South Asia region, including Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Nepal, Sri Lanka and Pakistan.

Today, the world marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights with a focus on “universality”.

Today, on World AIDS Day, we are called upon to be leaders in the fight against AIDS. Where there is strong and committed leadership, the response is more effective.

On the eve of World AIDS Day recognizing the theme of leadership, Parliamentarians from around the world have adopted bold recommendations to guide their response to HIV at the national level.

On the occasion of World AIDS Day the global call for nominations for the Red Ribbon Award 2008 will be announced in Mexico City. The biennial award, which will be presented at next summer’s International AIDS Conference in Mexico, will honour 25 community-based organisations for their contributions in responding to...

Today, on the 20th World AIDS Day, we are again beseeching leadership to ‘Stop AIDS and keep the promise.’ We asked them to do so last year, and we are asking them to do so again. Although much has been done since the last World AIDS Day, AIDS clearly has...

Today is a fitting time to acknowledge and celebrate the leadership of thousands of women and girls all over the world who, on a daily basis, take on the challenges of the AIDS epidemic with courage and conviction.

The World AIDS Campaign has selected “leadership” as the 2007 World AIDS Day theme highlighting the need for innovative and visionary leadership in response to the epidemic. It calls on all of us to renew our commitment at the individual, family, community, national and international level to support empowering leadership...

Speaking at the Saddleback Church Global AIDS Summit, UNAIDS Executive Director Dr. Peter Piot paid tribute to the contribution religious leaders have made to the global AIDS response, and the key role religious groups have played in providing HIV treatment, care and support in some of the remotest parts of...

The theme of this World AIDS Day is leadership. Without it, we will never get ahead of the epidemic.

Today, millions of people around the globe are marking the 20th World AIDS Day. For some, this may be the only day in the year they think about AIDS. For many, however, AIDS is part of daily life.

As communities gather to mark World AIDS Day, and governments take stock of the progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) is urging that more attention be paid to the fundamental connection between hunger and health, which lies at the heart of the...

New data show global HIV prevalence—the percentage of people living with HIV—has levelled off and that the number of new infections has fallen, in part as a result of the impact of HIV programmes. However, in 2007 33.2 million [30.6 – 36.1 million] people were estimated to be living with...

On 7 November 2007 at the HIV Vaccine Trials Network (HVTN) meeting in Seattle, NIH, HVTN and Merck released updated results based on post hoc analysis of data from a large-scale STEP trial with a Merck candidate vaccine (MRK-Ad5).

United Nations agencies and programs are committed to taking all the necessary measures to intensify Central America’s response to the HIV epidemic. This announcement was made by the Regional Directors for Latin America and the Caribbean of UNAIDS and UNICEF, participating in the 5th Central American Congress on HIV –...

Managua, 4 November 2007––Central America is preparing to host the V Central American Congress on STI, HIV and AIDS, to be held in Managua, Nicaragua from 4 to 9 November 2007 under the theme ‘For Equality, Diversity and Non-Discrimination’. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) is providing technical...

The United Nations System Chief Executive Board Meeting on 27 October under the leadership of the UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon, expressed its serious concern over the increasing number of violent attacks against humanitarian workers and other UN staff operating under the auspices of the United Nations in various regions of...

At the Second Pan-African Forum on Children in Cairo, UNAIDS called for more work to be done in gathering strategic information on children and AIDS. The call came in efforts to increase the understanding of the AIDS epidemic in children and the impact it is having on their lives.

AIDS, a disease which was not even known a quarter of a century ago, is now the fourth leading cause of death in the world. Today, approximately 40 million people are living with HIV, and in every region of the world, the proportion of women among those who are becoming...

African media personality Gaetano Kagwa has been appointed as a Special Representative for the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). In this role, the popular host of the M-NET African lifestyle television program Studio 53 and former Big Brother Africa contestant will raise awareness and carry out advocacy work...

Rupert Everett, renowned film and theatre actor and Special Representative of UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, is travelling in Russia from 23-26 September.

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...

A groundbreaking coalition aiming to build, strengthen, and increase interventions addressing HIV-related vulnerabilities of men who have sex with men (MSM) in the Asia and Pacific region was launched at the 8th International Congress on AIDS in Asia and Pacific (8th ICAAP).

Asia-Pacific nations will face a serious challenge in

The National AIDS Council and National Department of Health have released the latest estimates on national HIV prevalence in Papua New Guinea (PNG)

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has announced the appointment of Kristan Schoultz as the new Director of the Global Coalition on Women and AIDS.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) welcomes the ruling by the High Judicial Council of Libya to revoke the death sentence previously imposed on six healthcare workers by the Supreme Court. The Council announced yesterday that it would commute the death sentence for the medical professionals to life...

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) today acknowledged that good progress has been made in China’s response to AIDS, presenting special awards to China’s Vice Minister of Health, Dr Wang Longde and Professor Zhang Beichuan from Qingdao University, for their leadership on AIDS issues.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) expresses serious concern over the verdict delivered by the Libyan Supreme Court to uphold the death sentences imposed on six health care professionals.

The new 2006 estimates released today by the National AIDS Control Organization (NACO), supported by UNAIDS and WHO, indicate that national adult HIV prevalence in India is approximately 0.36%, which corresponds to an estimated 2 million to 3.1 million people living with HIV in the country. These estimates are more...

Press release issued by the World YWCA on the occasion of the opening of the International Women's Summit in Nairobi, Kenya.

Board calls for greater accountability and coherence, urges the UN to deliver as one and stresses importance of country led responses to the AIDS epidemic

UNAIDS commends the First Lady of Ethiopia, Mrs Azeb

The 2007 HIV/AIDS Implementers’ Meeting opens today in Kigali, and is expected to draw over 1,500 delegates from around the world. Rwanda was chosen to host the meeting in recognition of the country’s leadership in the fight against HIV/AIDS and the impressive results it has achieved.

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...

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...

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...

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...

Dr Peter Piot, Executive Director of UNAIDS and United Nations Under Secretary General, today welcomed South Africa’s new National Strategic Plan for AIDS and expressed optimism that the country stood on the brink of turning the tide against its AIDS epidemic. He congratulated South Africa on establishing the world’s largest...

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...

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-...

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) believes that the violence and abuse perpetrated against gay rights activists in the Russian capital on 27 May undermines fundamental human rights, as well as an effective response to AIDS in Russia..

The CARICOM based Pan-Caribbean Partnership Against HIV/AIDS (PANCAP) and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) are today launching a consolidated analysis of national AIDS responses in the Caribbean.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) applauds today’s announcement by United States President George Bush regarding his intention to extend and expand the U.S. government’s investment in the global AIDS response.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) welcomes the appointment of Elizabeth Mataka as the new Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for HIV/AIDS in Africa.

Welcoming the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon’s commitment and personal pledge that the United Nations will continue to prioritize the response to AIDS, the Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) emphasized the critical need to build leadership in all sectors to sustain the global AIDS response.

Press release - Day against homophobia

Despite increased political commitment and funding for the AIDS response, most people who inject drugs are still being denied access to basic HIV prevention and treatment services, said UNAIDS at the 18th Conference on Drug Related Harm in Poland.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) applauds the announcement made today by the Clinton Foundation HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI) which puts in place new reduced prices for antiretroviral medicines in low-and middle-income countries.

The goal of universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support is a top global priority and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) supports countries’ efforts to ensure access to high quality and affordable medicines.

It is with great sadness that UNAIDS has learned of the death of Mstislav Rostropovich who just a month ago celebrated his 80th birthday.

“Turning to the private sector and to civil society to lead its Board is a real indication of the Global Fund’s commitment to both accountability and social justice. We welcome all efforts in this direction as we all work together to make the money work for people on the ground,”...

These encouraging findings were released today in a new report, “Towards universal access: scaling up priority HIV/AIDS interventions in the health sector,” published by the World Health Organization (WHO), the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and UNICEF.

The AIDS epidemic: walking the last mile to make the difference , message on World AIDS Day 2006

Press release: In response to the urgent need to reduce the number of new HIV infections globally, the World Health Organization (WHO) and the UNAIDS Secretariat convened an international expert consultation to determine whether male circumcision should be recommended for the prevention of HIV infection.

Geneva, 28 March 2007: Statement by the UNAIDS Secretariat to the 4th Session of the Human Rights Council on the importance of the Council’s engagement on HIV and human rights in the push towards universal access to HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.

Leaders from Norway, UK, Sweden, UNAIDS and the World Bank today praised Mozambique’s efforts to fight AIDS, but called for greater donor coordination and continued leadership from the government to strengthen the national AIDS response.

The global tuberculosis (TB) epidemic has levelled off for the first time since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared TB a public health emergency in 1993.

UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund, and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) are delighted with the appointment of Ms. Purnima Mane as the new Deputy Executive Director (Programme) of UNFPA. Ms. Mane joins UNFPA from UNAIDS, where she served as Director of Policy, Evidence and Partnership.

Press statement: Following the recent claim of a new treatment which can cure AIDS in the Gambia, UNAIDS and WHO strongly encourage the Gambia to collaborate with international experts on efforts to assess the safety, efficacy and quality of the therapeutic intervention, according to standard practices in any product development.

The International Cricket Council

Washington, 9 December 2003—A global competition to find innovative new ways to fight the global HIV/AIDS epidemic has awarded $460,000 to teams of nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) from Brazil, Ethiopia, Kenya and Romania at a ceremony last week at the Washington headquarters of the World Bank.

Leaders from DFID, Norway, UNAIDS and the World Bank today praised Kenya’s response to AIDS, but highlighted that more needed to be done to ensure that it meets the needs of those vulnerable to, living with and affected by HIV and AIDS.

WHO, UNAIDS and UNICEF, guided by recent evidence, have agreed to modify as an interim the current recommendations (1) for cotrimoxazole prophylaxis in children. This is based upon recent trial data from Zambia (2).

UNIFEM, UNAIDS and Johnson & Johnson

Press Release 23 February 2007.

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) welcomes a new collaborative initiative between the Government of Canada and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to accelerate HIV vaccine research and development. The partnership entitled the ‘Canadian HIV Vaccine Initiative’ (CHVI) will contribute to the global effort to develop safe...

UNAIDS commends Merck’s decision to register ATRIPLA in developing countries. The registration of ATRIPLA, a once-daily single tablet regimen for treatment of HIV infection in adults, exemplifies the joint efforts of two research and development leaders, Merck Co. and Gilead Sciences to make essential medicines available to those in need.

UNAIDS mourns the death of french

The Joint United Nations Programme

Be smart – protect yourself”- The German football star and UNAIDS Special Representative Michael Ballack speaks out on HIV prevention by featuring in new public service announcement (PSA) on AIDS that urges young people to make smart choices.

The Joint United Nations Programme

One of Kenya’s leading scholars and renowned AIDS advocate and researcher, Professor Job Bwayo was killed during a shooting in the outskirts of Nairobi on Sunday 4 February.

A Phase III study of the candidate

Conor Lenihan TD, Minister of State for Irish Aid, today signed a new €30 million, five year partnership with the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). UN Under- Secretary and Executive Director of UNAIDS, Dr Peter Piot, was in Dublin to sign the agreement.

The United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned today that beginning next month more than 700,000 hungry Cambodians – mostly young children and HIV/AIDS and TB patients – will not receive essential food. The situation is likely to worsen unless new donations are received soon.

“AIDS is not a passing storm but a long-run threat to development and national security in Asia,” the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) reported at the 12th Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) Summit ‘Special Session on HIV/AIDS’, held on Saturday 13 January in Cebu city in the...