HIV/AIDS – Challenges & Impact of AIDS on Women – UN Women

United Nations, New York, 7 June 2011 — As world leaders
gather at UN Headquarters in New York this week to chart the future course of
the global AIDS response, UN Women is advocating for a robust response for
those infected and affected by HIV — particularly women and girls. The
organization is calling for concerted action on the unfulfilled commitments
made to women and girls to alleviate the suffering that comes from stigma,
violence, and the burden of caring for the sick.

There is good news: the latest data shows that the overall number of newly
infected people is shrinking and can continue to decrease, especially as new
tools of prevention become accessible. However, according to a new UN report,
of the young people who make up an estimated 41 percent of new infections, the
majority of them — more than 60 percent — are young women, with numbers rising
to an alarming high of 72 percent in sub-Saharan Africa — a clear demonstration
of the long-recognized linkages between gender inequalities and the risk of
infection.

The 2011 High-Level Meeting on AIDS marks the 10th
anniversary of the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS of 2001 and 30 years
into the AIDS epidemic. Despite the commitments made to gender equality at the
international level, women infected and affected by HIV still continue to face
persistent challenges in the areas of prevention, treatment, care and support
services.

“If we are to truly change the course of the epidemic and bring an end to
this pandemic, we must take this opportunity to back our commitments with
actions and resources, and include the voices of HIV-positive women in the
design of effective solutions,” said Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General
and Executive Director of UN Women. “They know what to do — and we know what to
do. We just need to do it. ”

UN Women, the youngest UN agency, which became operational on 1 January
2011, is charged with advancing gender equality. It merges four previously
distinct parts of the UN system which focused exclusively on gender equality
and women’s empowerment.

During the meeting, UN Women will put forth several key recommendations to
ensure that gender equality is a central element of the future course of the
AIDS response. They include :

• Empower HIV positive women as “agents of change”;

• Facilitate better access for women to prevention,
  treatment and care services;

• Ensure adequate financing for women’s needs and
  priorities; and

• Address violence against women.

On the occasion of  the High-Level Meeting, UN Women is co-organizing
 two events that will focus attention on the needs and priorities of women
in the context of HIV and that advocate for a redoubled effort to make gender
equality a genuine principle of the global response. Event details at www.unwomen.org/calendar-of-events/?event_id=16.

UN Women is also relaunching the Gender Equality and HIV/AIDS Web Portal —
at www.genderandaids.org
— a comprehensive, up-to-date, online resource for practitioners and experts.