As the world is witnessing financial crisis, the international philanthropic aid might be shrinking to India and other countries but India has committed more funds to fight AIDS. “BRICS countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa) increased domestic public spending on HIV by more than 120 percent between 2006 and 2011. India, too, has committed to increase domestic funding to more than 90 percent in its next phase of AIDS response,” said the UNAIDS report 2012.

The report also lauded the role of India and few countries in their fight against AIDS. “The sustained and increased investments by some lower and upper middle income countries—including India, China, South Africa and Thailand—as well as their participation in R&D projects, are now proving critical both to broadening the prevention research funding base and to expand research globally,” said the report titled ‘Together we will end AIDS’.

According to the report, “With 80 percent of these drugs being generic and purchased in India, several billion dollars have been saved over the past five years. The country is also committed to new forms of partnership with low-income countries through innovative support mechanisms and South–South cooperation.”

The report also mentions India’s new initiative. “In July 2011, India announced that it would work to ensure availability of generic ARVs and passed guidelines on new health insurance coverage for HIV patients,” said the 44-page report.

India gives free anti-retroviral therapy (ART) to people with HIV, with the cost of the treatment being the cheapest in the country, which has 2.7 million people living with HIV, with an adult prevalence of 0.31 percent of the general population.

The report noted that 34.2 million people are living with HIV.

Some facts about the report
•    34.2 million [31.8 – 35.9 million] people globally living with HIV
•    2.5 million [2.2 – 2.8 million] people became newly infected with HIV
•    1.7 million [1.6 – 1.9 million] people died of AIDS-related illnesses
•    More than 8 million people are receiving antiretroviral therapy

Read the report