HIV/AIDS (Human Immunodeficiency Virus/Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome) continues to be one of the world's most significant public health threats. The low and middle-income nations predominantly face drastic challenges as infections often result in the progressive deterioration of the immune system, breaking down the body's ability to fend off some infections and other diseases.

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Now, the United Nations (UN) aims to have an AIDS-free world by 2030. On Tuesday, the agency announced that though the move to completely eradicate the disease is quite ambitious, it is doable. UN also underscored the worldwide success of developing sophisticated drugs over the last 15 years.

"Ending the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat by 2030 is ambitious, but realistic," U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said in a statement. "We also know that it is essential to a fair and equitable future."

Moreover, UNAIDS is compelling efforts to totally stop and reverse the spread of disease by enabling everyone to have access to prevention services, treatment and support. According to Huffington Post, the number of new HIV cases has dropped by 35 percent, which is from 3.1 million to 2 million cases since 2000.

Fifteen years ago, AIDS was deemed as a "runaway express" whose progress was thought to be unstoppable. In fear of failure, several world leaders didn't want to participate in confronting the epidemic as part of UN's Millennium Development Goals (MDG).

Notwithstanding the grim outlook, a drastic decline has been seen, which is largely attributed to the greater accessibility to retroviral drugs, community outreach programs and the effective mobilization of advocates globally.

"The world has delivered," Ban said at the financing conference in Ethiopia on Tuesday. "We have achieved and exceeded the... goals regarding AIDS. We have 15 million people on HIV treatment. We are on the way to a generation free of AIDS."

Currently, medication for AIDS can be bought for $100 a year. These medicines prevent the virus from growing and multiplying, which can be a significant help to make patients live longer and to reduce the chances of transmitting HIV to others, Daily Mail has learned.

Meanwhile, Cuba became the first nation in the world to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV last month. However, the medical charity Medecins Sans Frontieres (MSF) warned against complacency, emphasizing that more than half of about 37 million people living with HIV worldwide still do not have access to treatment.

In other news, donor nations that contribute to fund the fight against global HIV/AIDS epidemic have halted the financial assistance. As per Voice of America, pace of donations dedicated to help fight HIV has started to slow because of the financial realities of budget cutbacks.  

The financial support from donor countries has been vital in the fight against the AIDS epidemic, but the resources need to be increased.

TagsAIDS, AIDS-Free World, AIDS Epidemic, UNAIDS