2016 HLM on AIDS

The new Political Declaration adopted by United Nations Member States charts a course to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030

UNITED NATIONS, NEW YORK, 10 June 2016—United Nations Member States have committed to implementing a bold agenda to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030 during the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, held in New York, United States of America, from 8 to 10 June. The progressive, new and actionable Political Declaration includes a set of specific, time-bound targets and actions that must be achieved by 2020 if the world is to get on the Fast-Track and end the AIDS epidemic by 2030 within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals.

The High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS was convened by the President of the General Assembly and co-facilitated by Switzerland and Zambia. At the opening, the President of the General Assembly, Mogens Lykketoft, urged Member States to commit to action.

“All stakeholders must now step up to the plate. Today is the day that we collectively say that we will end the AIDS epidemic by 2030,” said Mr Lykketoft. “We must pay greater attention to equality and inclusion, uphold human rights and speak out against stigma and discrimination.”

During the opening plenary, the United Nations Secretary-General, Ban Ki-moon, said that the AIDS response had been a “source of innovation and inspiration,” and the Executive Director of UNAIDS outlined the progress made in recent years, with 17 million people accessing antiretroviral treatment and significant declines in AIDS-related deaths and new HIV-infections among children.

"For the first time in history we can say that in Africa there are more people initiating HIV treatment than there are new HIV infections,” said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé. He also underlined the importance of inclusion, saying, “The doors of the United Nations should be open to all.”

Among many of the civil society representatives who participated in and spoke at the meeting, Loyce Maturu, a young woman living with HIV from Zimbabwe, shared her inspiring story during the opening plenary about growing up living with HIV. "I want young people living with HIV to be able to realize their dreams and hopes for the future," she said.

Ndaba Mandela, a grandson of Nelson Mandela, spoke passionately about his own family’s experience of HIV and urged everyone present to stand together to end AIDS by 2030. “I'm here to ask you to continue the legacy of my grandfather, Nelson Mandela: a legacy of unity and leadership.”

In addition to the plenary sessions around 600 participants, including 10 Heads of State and Government and more than 60 ministers, people living with HIV, representatives of civil society, representatives of international organizations and the private sector, scientists and researchers took part in five official panels and more than 30 side events to translate the new Political Declaration into action and results.  

The five official panels were under the following themes:

• AIDS within the Sustainable Development Goals: leveraging the end of AIDS for social transformation and sustainable development.
• Financing and sustaining the end of AIDS: the window of opportunity.
• Getting ahead of the looming treatment crisis: an action agenda for getting to 90–90–90.
• Leaving no one behind: ending stigma and discrimination through social justice and inclusive societies.
• Children, adolescent girls and young women: preventing new HIV infections.

Participants called for access to comprehensive sexuality education and harm reduction services as well as strengthening outreach to young women and adolescent girls and key populations, including men who have sex with men, sex workers, people who inject drugs, transgender people and prisoners as well as migrants.

During the High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, major announcements were made in support of ending the epidemic by 2030.

The United States of America announced the launch of a new US$ 100 million Key Populations Investment Fund to increase access to HIV services for sex workers, gay men and other men who have sex with men, people who inject drugs, transgender people and prisoners. The new fund will focus on reducing stigma and discrimination, empowering community leadership in the design and delivery of services and increasing the quality of data on key populations.

Yusuf K. Hamied, Chair of the Indian pharmaceutical company CIPLA, announced a package of assistance to African countries to facilitate the local production of medicines in Africa.   

UNAIDS and the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) released a final report on the progress made since the Global Plan towards the elimination of new HIV infections among children by 2015 and keeping their mothers alive was launched at the last United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on HIV and AIDS, in 2011.

There has been a 60% decline in new HIV infections among children since 2009 in the 21 countries in sub-Saharan Africa that have been most affected by the epidemic. To build on the enormous progress made in stopping new HIV infections among children, UNAIDS, PEPFAR and partners released a framework for ending AIDS among children, adolescents and young women—Start Free, Stay Free, AIDS-Free. The initiative sets ambitious targets to eliminate new infections among children, ensure access to treatment for all children living with HIV and prevent new HIV infections among adolescents and young women in order to put the world on a path to ending the AIDS epidemic among young women, adolescents and children.

Armenia, Belarus and Thailand joined Cuba in receiving official certificates of validation from the World Health Organization for eliminating new HIV infections among children. Thailand is the first country with a major HIV epidemic (450 000 people living with HIV in 2014) to receive such validation.

Events were held on the wider health agenda, including learning the lessons learned from responding to emerging epidemics, such as AIDS, Ebola and Zika, and on empowering adolescent girls and young women to access integrated health-care services, which was organized by the Organisation of African First Ladies against HIV/AIDS.

During the week of the meeting, several supporting events took place across New York. The Mayor of New York, Bill De Blasio, and the Mayor of Paris, Anne Hidalgo, convened around 30 mayors at the New York City Public Library to discuss how they are getting on the Fast-Track to end AIDS in cities. They also shared how smart cities are implementing urban innovations to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals.

In partnership with the Xinhua news agency, a billboard showcasing the UNAIDS Fast-Track response to ending AIDS ran in the city’s iconic Times Square. There was also an interfaith service and a number of events that focused on the importance of women’s involvement in leadership roles in the AIDS response.

On the eve of the High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, fashion designer and amfAR chair Kenneth Cole was named as an International Goodwill Ambassador for UNAIDS. UNAIDS International Goodwill Ambassador Annie Lennox took part in events throughout the week.

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.

On 10 June, the last day of the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, held from 8 to 10 June in New York, United States of America, representatives of United Nations and women-led civil society organizations, young women and government leaders and women living with and affected by HIV, came together to inspire and move forward the role of women in the response to AIDS.

The breakfast event, entitled “#whatwomenwant”, was supported by UNAIDS and other partners and led by the ATHENA Network which represents 60 civil society partners from 25 countries dedicated to advancing gender equity and human rights in the global AIDS response.

The event was the culmination of a week of advocacy activities organised in the lead-up to the High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS.  Athena hosted a large-scale, coordinated Twitter campaign called #WhatWomenWant and led a global consultation to hear what women want and identify the specific key actions needed to leverage a sea change in the AIDS response for women and girls.

Young leaders from Africa, the Caribbean, Latin America, and Eastern Europe called for building bridges across movements, sectors and leaders. They emphasised the interconnectedness between HIV and broader women’s issues, such as child marriage and gender-based violence. They also called for meaningful places at decision-making tables and women-centered and women-led research and innovation.  

In a lively session, participants shared personal views on the progress made to date and their views on what it would take to empower women and reach the goals of the 2016 Political Declaration on Ending AIDS by 2030. They explored options for stronger coordination and joint leadership to support women-led organizations and strengthen young women’s leadership in the HIV movement and beyond.

The Political Declaration strongly recognizes the importance of advancing gender equality and women’s empowerment as a human right and as critical to ending AIDS. This global political commitment is an unprecedented opportunity to focus on the specific vulnerabilities of young women and girls in all regions and to bring affected women to the centre of the agenda.

The new UNAIDS Strategy (2016-2020) is another example where commitments to gender transformative responses for human rights and gender equality have been centrally positioned. In order to meet the UNAIDS targets and the demands of what women want, sustained advocacy and accountability are essential.

The event concluded by calling for commitments to invest in young women’s leadership in order to bring sustainable change to the response to HIV.

Adolescent girls and young women are disproportionately affected by HIV. Of new infections among adolescents and young people aged 10–24 years, 65% are among adolescent girls and young women aged 10–24 globally. Much more needs to be done to promote prevention programmes based on gender equality, fulfilling sexual and reproductive rights and guaranteeing access to services for this key group, according to a panel meeting entitled “Children, adolescent girls and young women: preventing new HIV infections”.

There is little time to lose in addressing this situation. In 2015, nearly 390 000 [330 000–560 000] adolescent girls and young women aged 10–24 became newly infected with HIV globally, the vast majority of whom lived in southern Africa. In many countries in Africa, young women are more than twice as likely to acquire HIV as their male peers.

The panel, which met on 10 June at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, taking place in New York, United States of America from 8 to 10 June, explored ways of empowering adolescent girls and young women to claim their rights, creating an environment where they can live free from discrimination and violence. This is seen as critical because the risk of acquiring HIV tends to be associated with gender inequalities and norms that reinforce these inequalities, such as gender-based violence, lack of secondary education, early or forced marriage and lack of choice about how and with whom to have sex.

Children were also the focus of the discussion given that despite a considerable drop in the number being infected with HIV, 150 000 [110 000–190 000] children acquired the virus in 2015. Only half of all children living with HIV had access to treatment in that year. The panel argued that more attention should be paid to tackling barriers to accessing services, greater uptake should be encouraged and the treatment gap should be closed. 

Young women should be meaningfully involved in developing policies and programmes and should have access to comprehensive sexuality education and high-quality sexual and reproductive health services, the panel noted. The structural causes of inequality need to be addressed and boys and men must also play a key role in promoting gender equality and preventing gender-based violence. In addition, more effective monitoring systems that can follow children and young people diagnosed with HIV and facilitate access to treatment and care were considered necessary.  

Such programmes would help place children and adolescent girls and young women where they belong—at the core of the AIDS response. 

The AIDS epidemic will not be ended without efforts to end discrimination, respond to exclusion and advance social justice, according to a panel meeting held on 9 June during the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, taking place in New York, United States of America, from 8 to 10 June.

The panel, entitled “Leaving no one behind: ending stigma and discrimination through social justice and inclusive societies,” stressed that upholding the values of inclusion and social justice is fundamental to creating societies that advance dignity and share the benefit of wealth and health for all. It called for seizing the unparalleled opportunity offered by the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the newly adopted Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS to realize the vision of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 in a manner grounded in the principles of equality, inclusion and respect for the rule of law.

The panel highlighted the efforts of civil society in demanding protection against stigma and discrimination and calling for justice, dignity and access to health services for all. Yet, panellist and speakers recognized that across the world, women and girls, young people, migrants, sex workers, men who have sex with men, people who inject drugs, transgender people and prisoners continue to be left behind because of discriminatory and punitive laws, policies and practices. Participants also expressed concern about restrictive legal and policy environments that hinder the work of civil society organizations in supporting the HIV response.

The panel called for moving from recognition of these challenges to actions for addressing them. It noted that an epidemic such as AIDS can be transformed into a pathfinder for addressing structural inequalities and vulnerabilities provided that all stakeholders translate their commitments to leaving no one behind into concrete programmes and funding for human rights.

The panel concluded with an urgent call for action on the following: ending discrimination in health care, education and the workplace; addressing intellectual property regimes that prevent millions of people from accessing life-saving HIV, hepatitis and other treatments; removing punitive laws that block effective responses for people living with HIV and other key populations; investing in human rights programmes and efforts by civil society; and setting clear goals with targets and indicators on ending discrimination, repealing punitive laws and advancing social justice.

The best ways to respond to emerging epidemics have been outlined by leading policy-makers and health advisers during a side event entitled “Addressing global health emergencies: lessons from AIDS to Ebola, Zika and other emerging epidemics” that took place on 9 June.

Political leadership, the involvement of communities and a joined-up emergency response were highlighted as vital at the side event, which took place on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, held from 8 to 10 June in New York, United States of America.

The response to AIDS and, more recently Ebola and Zika, was used as a starting point to explore what lessons could be learned.

The discussion was chaired by Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS Luiz Loures and moderated by Laurie Garrett of United States think tank the Council on Foreign Relations.

Panellists at the side event included Sierra Leone’s Minister of Internal Affairs, Alfred Palo Conteh, the Executive Director for Gestos, Brazil, Alessandra Nilo, the Executive Director of Doctor Without Borders, Jason Cone, the World Health Organization’s Assistant Director-General for HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Malaria and Neglected Tropical Diseases, Ren Minghui, a professor from the Belgium Institute of Tropical Medicine, Marie Laga, and Monsignor Robert Vitillo, Special Adviser on Health and HIV to relief agency Caritas Internationalis.

The participants discussed how evidence from three decades of responding to HIV proved that responding to issues head-on within communities and engaging people living with HIV were essential.

The many similarities between HIV and outbreaks of Ebola and Zika allowed the participants to explore best practice when dealing with rapidly growing epidemics that are closely linked to poverty, inequality and gender.

The participants also examined how to overcome the fear, stigma and discrimination associated with epidemics so closely linked to sensitive topics, such as death and sexual behaviour.

The recommendations made at the side event included that steps should be taken to understand the cultural context of epidemics and that managing finances at the global level was necessary in order to tackle epidemics.

Other recommendations included integrating sexual, reproductive and human rights imperatives into the response, aligning new capacities to develop timely diagnostics, vaccines and medicines, ensuring that there are sufficiently qualified human resources and developing strong laboratory infrastructure and surveillance systems.

The 90–90–90 treatment target cannot be reached without a substantially greater involvement of a well-resourced and well-trained community health workforce, experts told a side event at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, taking place in New York, United States of America, from 8 to 10 June.

Speakers at the side event, held on 9 June and entitled “90–90–90 and human resources for health,” emphasized that the 90–90–90 treatment target offers a road map towards the ultimate goal of ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030. However, shortages in human resources for health pose a grave threat to hopes for ending the epidemic as a public health threat.

Community health workers represent a potentially transformative mechanism for closing health workforce gaps and accelerating progress in scaling up HIV treatment and improving treatment outcomes. Kesetebirhan Admasu, Minister of Health of Ethiopia, described how the country’s health extension worker programme has substantially improved health-care access and helped make health services more sensitive to the needs of communities.

Community health systems are especially critical for ensuring access to essential health services among people who face challenges in accessing mainstream services, including members of key populations. Surang Janyam, of the Service Workers In Group in Thailand, explained how trained community health workers have expanded access to HIV services among sex workers, men who have sex with men and transgender people in Thailand and increased community ownership of the AIDS response.

Sigrun Mogedal, of the Global Health Workforce Alliance, said that the AIDS response should partner and coordinate closely with the many efforts already being undertaken to strengthen the health workforce. In 2016, the World Health Assembly approved a new global strategy for the health workforce, prioritizing the strengthening of community health systems. The Earth Institute of Columbia University is spearheading a global partnership to mobilize 1 million community health workers in Africa, and countries such as Ghana have taken important steps to train and deploy new cadres of community health workers.

However, the lack of growth in international HIV assistance potentially jeopardizes the world’s capacity to build a strong and durable health workforce to achieve the 90–90–90 treatment target, speakers in the session emphasized. Jeffrey Sachs, Director of the Earth Institute, and Stephen Lewis, Co-Founder of AIDS-Free World, called for urgent action to mobilize new resources for AIDS and to ensure that sufficient new funding is channelled to community systems.

The key question of how the impending crisis in HIV treatment should be addressed dominated a panel meeting entitled “Getting ahead of the looming treatment crisis: an action agenda for reaching 90–90–90,” which met on 9 June at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, being held from 8 to 10 June in New York, United States of America.

The panel discussion focused on the imperative of achieving the global 90–90–90 treatment target, whereby 90% of people living with HIV know their status, 90% of people who know their HIV-positive status are accessing treatment and 90% of people on treatment have a suppressed viral load. 

Although such targets are realistic and achievable, the panel members argued that there is still a long way to go. Despite tremendous gains in treatment coverage, the current level is not sufficient to prevent the epidemic from rebounding in many countries.

A number of issues were cited, including the fact that half of all people living with HIV are unaware of their status and therefore not on treatment; given this figure, the number of people accessing antiretroviral therapy is expected to approximately double over the next five years. The sustainability of the supply of affordable antiretroviral medicines is uncertain, with new, more expensive, second- and third-line regimens becoming increasingly necessary. In addition, the generic market is concentrated among too few producers, which may have implications for sustainability.

The panel members suggested a range of recommendations to avert the looming treatment crisis. They stressed that the next phase of the AIDS response had to recognize new realities, such as rising migration and conflict, competing health and development issues and changing donor priorities.   

Front-loading AIDS funding over the next five years was also advocated, with resources needed for ending the epidemic peaking at US$ 26.2 billion in 2020. Treatment must become more widely available and countries should support the development, production and delivery of high-quality medicines, using the Agreement on Trade-Related Aspects of Intellectual Property Rights (TRIPS Agreement) to create generics. Treatment delivery also needs to be broadened, with greater decentralization (such as community-based service delivery) and better access to viral load monitoring, the panel noted.

The need for low- and middle-income countries to increase their domestic funding was also raised, along with the role of the international community in lending its support where necessary to reach the 90–90–90 treatment target as a sound investment for global health and sustainable development. 

During her remarks in the panel session, the United States Global AIDS Ambassador, Deborah Birx, announced a new US$ 100 million investment fund for key populations. Noting that although the 90–90–90 treatment target applies to everyone, to ensure access to all, the United States of America, through the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, would be taking action to ensure 90–90–90 for key populations. The new fund will support innovative, tailored, key population-led approaches to expand access to proven HIV prevention and treatment services so that the words “no one left behind” are translated into emergency action today.

Initiatives conducted in partnership with mass media outlets have proved to positively contribute to changing the HIV-related attitudes and behaviours of millions of people at very low cost. Edutainment designs characters and storylines to provide viewers with positive role models to relate to, often at a personal and emotional level.

At a side event on the margins of the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, being held in New York, United States of America, from 8 to 10 June, UNAIDS Brazil, Globo and other partners discussed how television, both web-based and other forms, can help educate people on issues related to living with HIV by focusing on people and not statistics.

Held on 9 June and entitled “New ways to engage youth to reach the UNAIDS Fast-Track Targets through edutainment,” the side event highlighted innovative ways of working with young people in Brazil. In the country, UNAIDS and Globo have started a partnership to reach young people and discuss a variety of issues, from HIV prevention to testing, treatment and the human rights of vulnerable populations and people living with HIV. UNAIDS has also partnered with the Brazilian Government to promote activism and the leadership of young people. Together, the country is implementing new ways to engage young people to reach the UNAIDS Fast-Track Targets.

The global commitment to ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 will demand increased investment in innovative and creative approaches that are able to Fast-Track the response and reach young people and people left behind. Innovative and creative approaches are needed to reduce stigma around HIV and promote HIV testing, prevention, care and treatment.

At the event, young people from Brazil and Africa gave examples of how they can be engaged in the response to the AIDS epidemic. Alejandra Oraa, from CNN and UNAIDS Regional Goodwill Ambassador for Latin America and the Caribbean, and James Chau, from CCTV and UNAIDS National Goodwill Ambassador for China, spoke about their experiences in working with large media for outreach. 

NEW YORK/GENEVA, 9 June 2016—At the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS, taking place in New York, United States of America, the Organisation of African First Ladies against HIV/AIDS (OAFLA) has called for the stronger integration of services to improve health outcomes among adolescent girls and young women.

First Ladies from Africa were joined by the First Lady of Haiti and the First Lady of Panama in calling for the empowerment of young women and adolescent girls in the AIDS response. The First Ladies said adolescent girls must assume leadership roles to ensure the development of programmes and policies that are appropriate to their needs and fully respect their sexual and reproductive health and rights. They urged providers of health-care services to better integrate service delivery and programme design to support the ability of adolescent girls and young women to make informed life choices and keep themselves healthy, including by protecting themselves from HIV infection.

Globally, AIDS-related illnesses remain the leading cause of death among women of reproductive age. In 2015, there were an estimated 250 000 [180 000–340 000] new HIV infections worldwide among adolescents (aged 15–19 years), with adolescent girls accounting for 65% of new HIV infections among this age group. AIDS-related illnesses are estimated to be the leading cause of death among adolescents in sub-Saharan Africa. Gender-based violence, gender inequity, harmful gender norms, stigma and discrimination often prevent women and girls from knowing their HIV status and accessing appropriate HIV prevention and treatment services.

The OAFLA session showcased examples of ground-breaking adolescent-centred policies and programmes delivered by governments, adolescent girls and young women, international organizations, the private sector and international donors. The event at the High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS was organized by OAFLA in collaboration with UNAIDS, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.

Quotes from speakers

“The Organisation of African First Ladies against HIV/AIDS strongly believes that in moving towards the Fast Track Targets we must ensure that no young girl or boy is left behind. We must address the needs of young people, especially young girls, ending gender inequality and other factors that increase their vulnerability to HIV.” Lordina Mahama, First Lady of Ghana

“Information allows young people to make choices and empowerment is having a choice. I encourage us all to listen to best practice programmes so we can be catalysts and advocates for policies that really work for young women.” Lorena Castillo de Varela, First Lady of Panama

“Despite the progress achieved, we must redouble our efforts. We must offer in a simple way information in relation to HIV infection.” Claudine Talon, First Lady of Benin

“At a time when we are entering a new phase in the AIDS response we need to pay particular attention to women, young girls and infants. We need new strategies to stop violence against women and girls, reduce school drop-outs and end forced early marriage.” Adjoavi Sika Kabore, First Lady of Burkina Faso

“We have to offer communities a package of integrated approaches that include immunization, sexual and reproductive health and rights and education.” Antoinette Sassou-Nguesso, First Lady of the Congo

“We need to redouble our efforts to offer antiretroviral therapy to protect the future of our countries because our young people are the future. In particular, our young women need to have equal and fair access to education and health care.” Dominique Ouattara, First Lady of Côte d’Ivoire

“I would like to make a call for effective international solidarity that will allow Haiti to protect young women and adolescent girls.” Ginette Michaud Privert, First Lady of Haiti

“The issue is how we prevent new HIV infections among young women. We need comprehensive sexual education in our school curricula and we must speak to them in the language they understand … We have done so much, but there is much more to be done.” Monica Geingos, First Lady of Namibia

“It is extremely important to meet the reproductive health needs of young Africans in order to end the HIV epidemic within the framework of the Sustainable Development Goals.” Aissata Issoufou Mahamadou, First Lady of Niger

 “We must push for comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights and ensure access for all young women and girls in all their diversity, including for key populations. We do not beg for our human rights, we demand them.” L’Orangelis Thomas Negron, HIV advocate

“We need to speak out and stop abuse and violence of any kind. I say enough!” Thandiwe Mudhumo, youth advocate

“Thandiwe Mudhumo is the embodiment of courage, resilience and hope. If we continue to fail adolescent girls and young women we will not end the AIDS epidemic.” Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS

“We need to value young girls, fix the issues that have resulted in the lack of impact in reducing HIV infections among them and develop determined, resilient, empowered, AIDS-free, mentored and safe young women who are ready to lead the next generation of girls.” Deborah Birx, United States Global AIDS Coordinator and Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy

“Today’s generation of youth is the biggest in history. If we want a demographic dividend from that generation we have to invest in adolescents now. It depends on all of us breaking down silos and adopting innovative solutions.” Seth Berkley, Chief Executive Officer, Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance

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.