On June 5, 1981, five cases of pneumonia due to a fungus, linked to a suppression of the immune system, were reported in five young people from Los Angeles. These cases are considered the first official registry of AIDS patients.

There have been multitudes of conversations revolving around HIV/AIDS response, scientific innovations, policy dialogue… but 43 years later and the fight is still on!

Although, great strides have been made since, however, HIV/AIDS remains a public health challenge.
According to the World Health Organization, WHO, in 2023, an estimated 39.9 million people were living with HIV globally, an estimated 1.3 million people acquired HIV in that year and approximately 630 000 people died from HIV‑related causes.

Here in sub-Saharan Africa, the HIV epidemic continues to smolder, in fact, our region is the world’s epicenter of HIV/AIDS with a prevalence rate of 9.0% for adults, compared to 1.2% globally, and women and girls of all ages accounting for 62% of all new HIV infections.