he World Health Organisation has identified human immunodeficiency virus as a persistent global public health challenge that has claimed an estimated 42.3 million lives to date. Transmission continues in every country, with an estimated 39.9 million people living with HIV by the end of 2023 and over 630,000 deaths from HIV-related causes in the year.
The World AIDS Day, observed annually on December 1 since 1988, serves as a global platform to raise awareness, foster solidarity and combat the stigma surrounding HIV/ AIDS. Under the theme - Take the Rights Path: My Health, My Right - the WHO has called on global leaders and citizens to address the inequalities that hinder progress in ending the epidemic. Access to healthcare is a fundamental human right. Ensuring that everyone has access to HIV prevention, treatment and care services — regardless of their background, gender or location — is essential to achieving this goal. Protecting the right to health requires making healthcare services universally available and accessible.
As part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goal 3, the global community aims to eliminate AIDS as a public health threat by 2030. Achieving this goal requires addressing systemic inequalities and ensuring that prevention, diagnosis and treatment services are accessible to all. Preventative measures, such as practicing safe sex, regular testing, avoiding shared needles and minimising exposure to blood and bodily fluids, are critical in reducing the risk of infection.
Despite decades of progress, HIV/ AIDS........