Inequalities in addressing AIDS jeopardize the efforts to eliminate the disease as a public health threat by the year 2030, cautioned UN Secretary-General António Guterres in a report published recently.

The report puts forward 10 important recommendations to get the world back on the path to end AIDS. The report stated that despite action taken and progress made against HIV in certain places and population groups, epidemics of HIV continue to expand in others. The report emphasizes that it is important to address social and structural factors that tend to maintain the inequalities. The report also described how the COVID-19 pandemic has brought to light the social inequalities and vulnerabilities in our health systems.

The UN Secretary-General said that we must make use of the experience from responding to the AIDS crisis and bolster our health systems and improve preparedness… (UN, April 30, 2021)