10 Facts on HIV / AIDS

“HIV” (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) is a virus that infects the immune system, decreasing its ability to fight off other infections and diseases. HIV can be transmitted through unprotected sex, transmission of infected blood, sharing infected needles or other sharp instruments, and from a mother to her baby during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding.
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Every day about 5,600 people contract HIV—more than 230 every hour.
More than 35 million people live with HIV worldwide.
Only 54% of all people living with HIV know that they have the virus
Since 2000, 38.1 million people have become infected with HIV and 25.3 million people have died of AIDS-related illnesses.

At the end of 2011, there were 3.3 million children living with HIV around the world.
70% of all people living with HIV (24.7 million) live in sub-Saharan Africa, including 91% of the world’s HIV-positive children.
As of March 2015, 15 million people living with HIV were receiving antiretroviral treatment (including 823,000 children) – representing 41% of those in need. 13.5 million of these people were in low- and middle- income countries.
Most people living with or at risk of contracting HIV do not have access to prevention, care, or treatment. As of 2014, there is no cure for the virus.
In 2014, an estimated $20.2 billion was made available for HIV programmes in low- and middle- income countries

¹“HIV/AIDS.” Mayo Clinic. http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/hiv-aids/basics/definition/con-20013732 (accessed July 27, 2014). “How Do You Get HIV or AIDS?.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://aids.gov/hiv-aids-basics/hiv-aids-101/how-you-get-hiv-aids/ (accessed July 27, 2014).
2″UNAIDS Report: How AIDS changed everything, 2015; UNAIDS 2014 Global Statistics”
³“Statistics: Worldwide.” amfAR. http://www.amfar.org/about-hiv-and-aids/facts-and-stats/statistics–worldwide/ (accessed July 27, 2014).
⁴a. b. UNAIDS (2015) ‘How AIDS Changed Everything’
⁵“a. b. c. d. e. UNAIDS (2015) ‘Fact sheet: 2014 statistics’
⁶“Children and HIV/AIDS.” HIV and AIDS information and resources. http://www.avert.org/children-and-hiv-aids.htm (accessed July 28, 2014)
⁷“Statistics: Worldwide.” amfAR. http://www.amfar.org/about-hiv-and-aids/facts-and-stats/statistics–worldwide/ (accessed July 27, 2014)
⁸a. b. World Health Organisation (WHO) (2015) ‘HIV/AIDS’
⁹“Global AIDS Overview.” U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. http://aids.gov/federal-resources/around-the-world/global-aids-overview/ (accessed July 26, 2014).
¹⁰a. b. c. d. e. UNAIDS (2015) ‘Fact sheet: 2014 statistics’