Global HIV deaths have reached a record high no thanks to funding cut from leading donors like the United States (US).
Donor government funding fell by 25 per cent last year, the largest single-year drop since international HIV financing began expanding in 2002, driven entirely by a sharp reduction in US funding following disbursement delays and the cancellation of several global health projects.
According to reports from UNAIDS and KFF released at the 26th International AIDS Conference (AIDS 2026) in Rio de Janeiro, global funding for the HIV response suffered its steepest annual decline on record in 2025,
Domestic HIV financing by affected countries rose four per cent, but the reports warned this was insufficient to offset the international shortfall, leaving the global response under its greatest financial strain in more than two decades. Domestic resources accounted for nearly 60 per cent of total HIV funding in 2025, while more than 55 countries have pledged increased investment in 2026.
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UNAIDS estimated that 1.2 million people acquired HIV in 2025 and 570,000 died from AIDS-related illnesses, leaving the world off track to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030. New infections are rising in Brazil, Pakistan, the Philippines and Madagascar, though Kenya, Lesotho, Rwanda, Zimbabwe and Eswatini continue to record progress despite funding constraints.
International AIDS Society President Beatriz Grinsztejn said donor funding had “fallen so far, so fast” that vulnerable populations were already bearing the consequences.
