GENEVA/GSTAAD, 11 July 2016—UNAIDS has appointed Swiss tennis player Timea Bacsinszky as a Global Advocate for Young People. The announcement was made during the Women’s Tennis Association Ladies Championship Gstaad, taking place in Gstaad, Switzerland, from 9 to 17 July.
In her new role, Ms Bacsinszky will work to ensure that young people have access to the information and services needed to protect themselves from becoming infected with HIV and will encourage young people to get tested for the virus and seek immediate treatment if necessary to keep them alive and well.
“My generation has never known a world without HIV, but we have the power to change this for future generations,” said Ms Bacsinszky. “Ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 will require commitment and perseverance to get the job done and this will only happen if we break down the stigma that still surrounds HIV.”
Ms Bacsinszky is supporting the UNAIDS #ProTESTHIV campaign, which encourages young people to become actively involved in promoting HIV testing and linkage to care and treatment services. People can find more information at protesthiv.org.
“Timea Bacsinszky’s energy and dedication on the tennis court are very clear,” said Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS. “These are valuable qualities that will help to mobilize young people to join the global movement in response to HIV and become the generation to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.”
There are 36.7 million people living with HIV globally, 3.9 million of whom are young people aged 15 to 24. Young people are especially vulnerable to HIV infection. In 2015, there were an estimated 670 000 new HIV infections worldwide among young people aged 15 to 24, with young women accounting for 58% of new infections among this age group.
UNAIDS is the main charitable beneficiary of the Women’s Tennis Association Ladies Championship Gstaad in 2016.
UNAIDS
The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.
