World AIDS Day Report 2021: Why bold action against inequalities is needed to end AIDS, stop COVID-19 and prepare for future pandemics

This report is a wake-up call on the AIDS emergency, and on the urgency of addressing our multiple pandemic challenges together. It highlights why we can’t afford not to end AIDS, and powerfully illustrates the need for leaders to take the courageous steps that will save lives today and make us more prepared for pandemics of the future. The AIDS pandemic could kill millions in the coming years if we do not act with urgency. In this time of COVID-19, there is a significant risk that political attention to and financing for HIV will drift. If we do not take the steps needed to tackle the inequalities driving HIV today, not only will we fail to end the AIDS pandemic, we also will leave our world dangerously unprepared for future pandemics. As the report notes, an effective package of measures needs to include community-led services, affordable access to cutting-edge medical technology, human rights, protections for health and essential workers, and data to reveal inequalities. Too often, such key issues are pushed to the periphery. But the transformative measures required to end AIDS are core to good pandemic preparedness and response. This report illustrates the need for the comprehensive approach to pandemics called for by the Independent Panel for Pandemic Preparedness and Response.