The United Nations agency focusing on the HIV/AIDS pandemic could close by the end of next year as the U.N. restructures in the face of a funding crisis, according to a U.N. document published online
UNAIDS will "sunset" by the end of 2026, the document published on Thursday reads, part of a set of proposals from the U.N. to member states which they will have to decide on.
It adds that UNAIDS' expertise should be shifted into the wider U.N. system in the following year.
The U.N. is streamlining as it copes with the fallout from U.S. foreign aid cuts under President Donald Trump that have gutted humanitarian agencies.
UNAIDS said in a statement in response to the document that it already had a transition plan in place which would see a 55% reduction in staff in the short term and a review in 2027 that would ultimately lead to its closure.
It said any accelerated timeline as outlined in the U.N. document, which was drafted by the Secretary General, would have to be approved by the UNAIDS board.
UNAIDS began operating in 1996. Since the first cases of HIV were reported more than 40 years ago, 88 million people have become infected and 42 million have died from AIDS-related illnesses, it said.
The organisation said the rollout of new life-saving treatments and better access to care saw AIDS-related deaths halve from 1.3 million in 2010 to 630,000 in 2023.
But it warned nearly one quarter of those living with HIV do not have access to those treatments and new infections are rising in some regions.
"AIDS is not over; the global AIDS response has been upended in recent months," the UNAIDS statement said, adding much more needed to be done if the world wanted to achieve the goal of ending AIDS by 2030.
New York City’s mayoral election on 4 November 2025 has become one of the most closely watched local races in the United States — a contest seen a...
Almost 1,000 Sudanese civilians have fled their homes in North Darfur in a single day due to intensifying insecurity, the International Organization f...
The Israeli army says Hamas has transferred the remains of three Israeli hostages to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as part of th...
Iraq signed a deal with Türkiye on Sunday under which water infrastructure projects to be carried out by Turkish firms will be financed with revenue ...
Nigeria welcomes U.S. help against Islamist insurgents if its territorial integrity is respected, responding to Trump’s threats over alleged mistrea...
New York City’s mayoral election on 4 November 2025 has become one of the most closely watched local races in the United States — a contest seen as testing the ideological balance of the Democratic Party and the direction of America’s largest city.
Almost 1,000 Sudanese civilians have fled their homes in North Darfur in a single day due to intensifying insecurity, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Sunday.
The Israeli army says Hamas has transferred the remains of three Israeli hostages to the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) as part of the Gaza ceasefire agreement.
On October 21, 2025, an Azerbaijani Airlines (AZAL) Gulfstream G650, call sign 4K-ASG, touched down at Yerevan’s Zvartnots Airport. It was a historic event, commented many.
Ukraine’s top military commander has confirmed that troops are facing “difficult conditions” defending the strategic eastern town of Pokrovsk against a multi-thousand Russian force.
Residents of Hoi An, Vietnam’s UNESCO-listed ancient town, began cleaning up on Saturday as floodwaters receded following days of torrential rain that brought deadly flooding and widespread destruction to the central region.
The United Nations has warned of a catastrophic humanitarian situation in Sudan after reports emerged of mass killings, sexual violence, and forced displacements following the capture of al-Fashir by the Rapid Support Forces (RSF).
Egypt has inaugurated the Grand Egyptian Museum near the Great Pyramid of Giza, unveiling the world’s largest archaeological museum and a modern cultural landmark celebrating over 7,000 years of history.
Russia has launched its new nuclear-powered submarine, the Khabarovsk, at the Sevmash shipyard in Severodvinsk, the Defence Ministry said Saturday.
A prostate cancer blood test has been shown to reduce the risk of dying from the disease by 13% over two decades, researchers say.
Serious cases of a disorder of the large intestine are surging among Americans younger than 50, researchers say.
Russian President Vladimir Putin asked North Korean Foreign Minister Choe Son Hui during talks in the Kremlin on Monday to tell her country's leader Kim Jong Un that everything was "going to plan" in bilateral relations.
U.S. border czar says fentanyl should be considered a WMD.
U.S. states this week warned food aid recipients that their benefits may not be distributed in November if the federal government shutdown stretches into its fourth week.
You can download the AnewZ application from Play Store and the App Store.
What is your opinion on this topic?
Leave the first comment