Infections of HIV in children have dropped by more than half since 2001, and the rates have fallen in adults as well.
New infections in adults and children went down by a combined 33 percent over the past decade, a UNAIDS press release reported.
The new report from the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) found we were on track to reach the UN's global goals on HIV/AIDS. In 2011, UN states agreed to a goal of getting 15 million people access to HIV treatment. After extensive research, the Center for Disease Control raised the number of people in need of treatment by 10 million.
"Not only can we meet the 2015 target of 15 million people on HIV treatment-we must also go beyond and have the vision and commitment to ensure no one is left behind," Michel Sidibé, Executive Director of UNAIDS, said
In 2012, about 9.7 million people in low and middle-income countries had access to antiretroviral, which was a 20 percent increase since only a year earlier.
There were about 2.3 million HIV infections in 2012, which is significantly less than the 2001 and rate. There were 260,000 fewer HIV infections in young children, which marks a 52 percent decrease.
AIDS-related-deaths peaked in 2005, but have gone down by 33 percent since then. Tuberculosis-related deaths in those infected with AIDS have also dropped by 36 percent since 2004.
Some of these improvements are thanks to a 54 percent increase in AIDS research spending. The available resources for HIV/AIDS medical development was at about 18.9 billion in 2012.
"The report finds that progress has been slow in ensuring the respect of human rights, securing access to HIV services for people most at risk of HIV infection, particularly people who use drugs, and in preventing violence against women and girls--a key factor in vulnerability to HIV. Gender inequality, punitive laws and discriminatory actions are continuing to hamper national responses to HIV and concerted efforts are needed to address these persistent obstacles to the scale up of HIV services for people most in need," the press release reported.
