Ambassador Mark Dybul's Statement on the UNAIDS/WHO 2007 AIDS Epidemic Update

Washington, DC –The following is a statement from Ambassador Mark Dybul, PEPFAR Coordinator:

“The statistics released in the 2007 AIDS Epidemic Update report published by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the World Health Organization (WHO) reaffirm the ongoing need for an urgent response to global HIV/AIDS. HIV/AIDS was and is a global health emergency requiring emergency action. AIDS is still among the leading causes of death globally, causing more than 5,700 deaths every day.

“The revised estimates of the HIV/AIDS epidemic reflect major improvements to UNAIDS/WHO methodologies. These organizations should be commended for their commitment to increasing the accuracy of HIV data through improving methodologies for calculating HIV/AIDS estimates and ensuring the collection of robust data.

“In addition, there is encouraging evidence regarding success in the fight against HIV/AIDS. The new data demonstrate the impact that HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and care programs, including those supported by President Bush’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), are having on the epidemic. In some countries, new HIV infections are declining and the data indicate that mortality could also be declining. Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya and Zimbabwe have all seen downward trends in their national prevalence percentages. Preliminary data also show favorable changes in risk behavior among young people in Cameroon, Kenya, Zimbabwe and several other countries, showing that prevention programs can have a positive impact in severely affected countries. While the causes for decline of HIV prevalence are undoubtedly complex, these countries have demonstrated broad reductions in sexual risk behavior, suggesting that behavior change can play a key role in reversing the course of HIV/AIDS epidemics. Indeed, UNAIDS/WHO now reports that most of the countries in Southern, East and West Africa have adult prevalence rates that have stabilized or started to decline. Prevalence declines have also occurred in South and South-East Asia, notably in Cambodia, Burma and Thailand. This data further reinforces the importance of a comprehensive response to the epidemic through integrated prevention, care and treatment programs.”

For more information on the UNAIDS/WHO 2007 AIDS Epidemic Update, please visit http://www.unaids.org/en/HIV_data/2007EpiUpdate/default.asp.

Released on November 20, 2007