Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The global fight against HIV/AIDS stands at a defining moment as the United Nations, UN, warned that steep funding cuts and growing attacks on human rights could reverse decades of hard-won gains and derail the ambitious target of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

As world leaders on Monday convened at the United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS in New York, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) delivered a stark message: the world is dangerously close to losing momentum in one of modern public health’s greatest success stories.

The meeting, which comes nine years after the adoption of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals, is expected to produce a new Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS that will guide the global response over the next five years and represent the last major international commitment before the 2030 deadline.

UNAIDS Executive Director, Winnie Byanyima, described the gathering as a pivotal opportunity to rescue and accelerate the global response.

“This Political Declaration is our chance to build on 25 years of commitment and point the way to 2030 to show that multilateralism can deliver,” she said. “We cannot fail because we know what we must do: sustain financing, protect the rights of people living with HIV, empower communities and ensure innovations reach everyone in need.”

The warning comes despite remarkable progress achieved over the past decade.

According to new UNAIDS data released ahead of the meeting, AIDS-related deaths have declined by 56 per cent since 2010, while new HIV infections have fallen by 43 per cent globally. More than 32 million people living with HIV are now receiving life-saving treatment, a development that once seemed unattainable.

The global HIV response has often been cited as one of the most successful examples of international cooperation. Since the first UN Special Session on HIV/AIDS in 2001, governments, civil society groups, scientists and development partners have mobilised unprecedented resources to combat a disease that claimed millions of lives and devastated communities, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa.

At its peak in the early 2000s, AIDS was among the leading causes of death worldwide, killing millions annually and leaving countless children orphaned. International initiatives, including the establishment of the Global Fund and the United States’ PEPFAR programme, transformed access to antiretroviral treatment and dramatically reduced mortality rates, especially in low- and middle-income countries.

However, the gains now appear increasingly fragile.

UNAIDS reported that nearly nine million people living with HIV remain without treatment, while global development assistance for health fell by 23 per cent in 2025, the sharpest decline ever recorded. The agency warned that funding reductions are already disrupting testing services, prevention programmes and access to essential commodities.

In some high-burden countries, HIV testing programmes declined by 22 per cent between 2024 and 2025, while funding for condom supplies has been slashed by more than 90 per cent.

UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohammed, speaking on behalf of Secretary-General António Guterres, called on governments to demonstrate renewed solidarity.

“This meeting is a chance to demonstrate that, even in difficult times, the international community can rally once again around science, human dignity, solidarity and shared responsibility,” she said.

Health experts have expressed concern that treatment interruptions could trigger a resurgence of the epidemic, leading to increased infections and preventable deaths, particularly among vulnerable populations.

The situation is further complicated by growing criminalisation and discrimination against groups considered to be at higher risk of infection, including young women and girls, men who have sex with men, sex workers and people who inject drugs.

Keren Dunaway of the International Community of Women Living with HIV warned that many of the rights and protections that underpinned progress against AIDS are being eroded.

“These gains were not handed to us. They were won through decades of advocacy,” she said. “The future of the response will depend on the choices we make in this room.”

Despite the challenges, UNAIDS says opportunities still exist to finish the fight. Domestic financing for HIV programmes has grown substantially, accounting for more than half of all HIV funding globally, while scientific breakthroughs, including long-acting HIV prevention medicines, are opening new possibilities for controlling and ultimately ending the epidemic.

AIDS advocate Sandra Thurman urged world leaders not to abandon the mission at the final stretch.

“The world has come too far. The stakes are too high. And the opportunity is too great. Now is not the time to quit. It is time to finish the job,” she said.

For Africa, which remains home to the largest population of people living with HIV, the decisions reached at the New York meeting could prove decisive.

Public health experts warn that failure to sustain investments and political commitment could reverse decades of progress and undermine global efforts to achieve one of the most ambitious public health goals in modern history—the end of AIDS by 2030.