GENEVA, 25 November 2025—The global response to HIV is facing its most significant setback in decades, according to a new UNAIDS report released today ahead of World AIDS Day 2025. The report, titled Overcoming Disruption, Transforming the AIDS Response, outlines the severe consequences of international funding reductions and a lack of global solidarity, which have sent shockwaves through low- and middle-income countries heavily affected by HIV.
The funding crisis has led to massive disruptions in HIV prevention and community-led services, particularly for the most vulnerable populations. Despite these challenges, the report indicates that resilience, investment, and innovation, combined with global solidarity, still offer a path to ending AIDS.
A Global System in Shock
Abrupt reductions in international HIV assistance in 2025 have exacerbated existing funding shortfalls. According to the OECD, external health assistance is projected to drop by 30-40% in 2025 compared with 2023, causing immediate and severe disruptions to health services in low- and middle-income countries.
“The funding crisis has exposed the fragility of the progress we fought so hard to achieve,” said Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “Behind every data point in this report are people—babies and children missed for HIV screening or early HIV diagnosis, young women cut off from prevention support, and communities suddenly left without services and care. We cannot abandon them. We must overcome this disruption and transform the AIDS response.”
Prevention services, already under strain before the crisis, have been hit hardest. Major reductions in access to medicines to prevent HIV, such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and sharp declines in voluntary medical male circumcision for HIV prevention have left a growing protection gap for millions. The dismantling of HIV prevention programs designed with and for young women has deprived adolescent girls and young women of essential services, increasing their vulnerability. In 2024, there were globally 570 new HIV infections every day among young women and girls aged 15-24.
Mounting Human Rights Concerns
The funding crisis has unfolded against a deteriorating global human rights environment, with particularly severe consequences for marginalized populations. In 2025, the number of countries criminalizing same-sex sexual activity and gender expression rose for the first time since UNAIDS began monitoring punitive laws in 2008. Restrictions on civil society, particularly those working with key populations globally and young women and girls in sub-Saharan Africa, are further disrupting essential access to HIV services.
Community-led organizations, the backbone of the HIV response, report widespread closures, with more than 60% of women-led organizations suspending essential programs. Services for key populations, including men who have sex with men, sex workers, people who inject drugs, and transgender people, have also been severely impacted.
Resilience and Innovation Offer Hope
Despite these challenges, several countries have taken swift action to close funding gaps. As a result, many countries are showing resilience in HIV treatment delivery. Some have reported relatively steady numbers or even an increase in new initiations on antiretroviral therapy due to swift actions to maintain services.
Nigeria, Uganda, Côte d’Ivoire, South Africa, and Tanzania have all committed to increasing domestic investments in HIV services. UNAIDS is working with more than 30 countries to accelerate national sustainability plans.
Innovation is also gaining momentum. HIV prevention technologies, including twice-yearly injections to prevent HIV, have the potential to prevent tens of thousands of new infections in high-burden settings. New partnerships announced in 2025 by the Gates Foundation, UNITAID, the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, TB and Malaria, and the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief have launched initiatives to ensure widespread access to affordable generic formulations of life-saving medicines, for as little as USD 40 per person per year in some cases.
“We know what works—we have the science, tools, and proven strategies,” said Ms. Byanyima. “What we need now is political courage. Investing in communities, in prevention, in innovation, and in protecting human rights is the path to end AIDS.”
A Call to Action
Today, 40.8 million people are living with HIV worldwide, 1.3 million new infections occurred in 2024, and 9.2 million people are still not accessing treatment. This World AIDS Day, UNAIDS is calling on global leaders to reaffirm global solidarity, multilateralism, and the collective commitment to fight and end AIDS together. This is the bedrock of our progress to date.
Developments in the latter half of 2025 offer some hope for sustaining critical international financing. The US released its new America First Global Health Strategy and is establishing bilateral agreements with around 70 countries to continue funding during a progressive transfer to self-reliant national HIV responses over the next two to five years. The Global Fund’s recent Eighth Replenishment conference also generated pledges of USD $11.34 billion, with more partners still to come forward. This is an extraordinary achievement.
UNAIDS urges global leaders to maintain funding for the response, invest in innovation, and uphold human rights. Empowering communities is crucial, as they are at the heart of every successful response. Their voices, leadership, and lived experience drive progress and accountability.
“This is our moment to choose,” Ms. Byanyima urged. “We can allow these shocks to undo decades of hard-won gains, or we can unite behind the shared vision of ending AIDS. Millions of lives depend on the choices we make today.”
After decades of struggle, the global HIV response was within reach of its goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030. The world has come too far—and achieved too much—to allow progress to unravel at this moment of historic opportunity.
