Zee Media Bureau
Wellington: A five-year, fast-track battle against HIV could end the global threat of the AIDS epidemic by 2030, the United Nations has said.
UNAIDS' executive director, Michel Sidibe said that if just 3 dollars a day is invested for each person living with HIV for the next five years, then it will be possible to put an end to this epidemic for good, as each dollar invested will produce 15 dollars in return.
Around 35.3 million people around the world are living with HIV, which has caused more than 25 million deaths since AIDS first emerged in the early 1980s.
UNAIDS' fast-track target known as 90-90-90 - is aimed at having 90 per cent of people with HIV knowing they are HIV-positive, 90 per cent of diagnosed people on treatment, and 90 per cent of those on treatment able to use the medication to suppress the amount of virus in their bodies to a low level.
Other targets include reducing the annual number of new HIV infections by more than 75 per cent - to 500,000 in 2020 - and focusing major efforts in the 30 countries that together account for 89 percent of new HIV infections worldwide.
UNAIDS data show that in 2013, 35 million people globally were living with HIV, 2.1 million people were newly infected with the virus and some 1.5 million people died of AIDS.
(With Agency inputs)
