Such a situation could prove damaging for Eastern Europe and Central Asia, where a 72 percent rise in new infections has been recorded since 2010. "Our progress towards ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 was already off track before the COVID-19 outbreak. The report said millions of lives have been saved by the scale-up of antiretroviral therapy that suppresses HIV and stops the progression of AIDS. And with some 1.7 million people newly infected with the virus, the report said the world is "far behind" in preventing new HIV infections. New HIV infections have also risen by more than 20 percent in the Middle East, North Africa, and Latin America.

Source: The North Africa Journal July 07, 2020 13:07 UTC