JawaPos.com One way of transmitting HIV/AIDS is through the mother to the fetus. So that children may be at risk of infection. Data from UNAIDS Indonesia, only 25% of children living with HIV receive life-saving ARV treatment.
UNAIDS Indonesia, Positive Indonesia Network, Indonesian Positive Women’s Association, Lantern Anak Pelangi and Pelita Ilmu Foundation have launched a new alliance to solve one of the most glaring problems in the AIDS response. It’s that inequality stands in the way of ending AIDS.
With current trends, the world will fall short of the agreed global goals on AIDS. But the new UNAIDS Global report, Dangerous Inequalities, shows that urgent action to address inequalities can put AIDS programs back on track.
Earlier this year, UNAIDS Global said the AIDS response program was in danger. New infections and deaths continue in various parts of the world.
A new report from UNAIDS Global suggests that the underlying reason is inequality. The report also shows how world leaders can address this inequality and asks them to have the courage to follow what the evidence reveals.
Dangerous Inequalities uncovers the impact of gender inequality on AIDS, the inequalities faced by key populations, and the inequalities between children and adults. This report also shows how financial constraints exacerbate the situation in tackling inequality. The report shows how gender inequality and gender-related discriminatory norms can hinder the end of the AIDS pandemic.
“The world will not be able to defeat AIDS if patriarchy is still strong,” UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima said in an official statement on Thursday (12/1).
Children difficult to get access to medicine
Recent reports from Global also show that the AIDS response is being held back by disparities in access to care between adults and children. While more than three-quarters of adults living with HIV are using antiretroviral therapy, more than half of children living with HIV are taking life-saving drugs.
“This has terrible consequences,” he said.
By 2021, children will account for 4% of all people living with HIV, but 15% of all AIDS-related deaths. The same situation also occurs in Indonesia, where in 2021 children account for 12% of the 27,000 new HIV infections and 9% of the 26,000 AIDS-related deaths in Indonesia. The therapeutic coverage in children is very low, only 25%.
“The barriers to accessing care for children are far beyond their reach. There are not enough HIV medicines developed specifically for children’s needs. Other than that, closing the treatment gap for children will save lives,” she said.
“We are still a long way from ending new HIV infections in women and children,” he concluded.
Publisher: Nurul Adriyana Salbiah
Reporter: Marieska Harya Virdhani
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