World AIDS Day 2015
The first day of December is observed the world over as World Aids Day, a special commemoration of the global effects of the HIV/Aids pandemic. Begun in 1988 as a way to fight the stigma of the disease and educate people about prevention and treatment, the ultimate objective of World Aids Day 2015 is: Getting to Zero.
The first World Aids Day was held on 1 December 1988, conceived by the Global Programme on Aids initiative to highlight the disease and its effects on the world. It was also held to remove the stigma from the disease and halt false rumours about how Aids was contracted. The day is also used to call for more action from governments, the medical science community, and the private sector to develop and distribute affordable treatments.
The themes for each World Aids Day aim to highlight not only the
disease but also the global social implications of the disease, by
twinning the commemoration with human and children rights activism,
gender violence prevention and urging accountability by governments and
business to play their part in combating the disease.
The day is an opportunity for the voices of those affected by the disease around the world to be heard.
The theme of World Aids Day this year is a continuation of its
Getting to Zero objective established in 2011. Getting to Zero is a
global effort on all fronts: social, scientific and governmental, to
reach zero new infections, zero discrimination based on those with the
disease and zero HIV/Aids-related deaths.
World Aids Day falls during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender
Violence campaign, which is a particularly rigorous initiative in South
Africa.
In addition, in the country, the various government and private sector HIV
treatment programmes and prevention initiatives fall in line with one
of the objectives of the National Development Programme’s Vision 2030,
namely, to offer a long and healthy life for all, no matter their HIV status, and to improve the quality of life of those afflicted and their families.
According to the World Health Organization, Unicef and UNAids, in 2015:
Around the world, 36.9 million people are HIV-positive, including 2.6 million children.
In 2014/15, 2 million new infections were reported.
In total, 34 million people have died of Aids-related illness and an estimated 1.2 million died in 2014/15.
Adolescent deaths have tripled over the last 15 years, with Aids
being the leading cause of death for adolescents in Africa and second in
the world.
Sub-Saharan Africa has the largest population of HIV-infected people, estimated to be between 21.6- and 27.4 million people; almost 3 million are children younger than 15.
In 2001, only 1 million people were receiving antiretroviral therapy; in 2015, 15 million are receiving treatment.
While only an estimated 51% people with HIV
know their status, the global response to the disease has helped to
avert 30 million new infections and 8 million deaths since 2000.
Cuba is the first country to declare the complete elimination of mother-to-child HIV transmission.
