Facts on HIV/AIDS

  • The spread of HIV/AIDS is a major worldwide health issue. UNAIDS and the WHO estimate that AIDS has killed more than 25 million people since it was first recognized in 1981, making it one of the most destructive pandemics in recorded history.
     
  • There are now nearly 40 million people infected with HIV/AIDS worldwide
     
  • Of the 40 million infected people, 37 million are adults and 2.5 million are children.
     
  • Two third of those infected live in Sub-Saharan Africa.
     
  • In countries such as Botswana and Swaziland the adult incident rate for HIV is between 30-40%.
     
  • In 2008, there were approximately 2.7 million new infections worldwide.
     
  • 95% of these new infections were in the developing world and 1.9 million of them were in Sub-Saharan Africa.
     
  • Of the new infections in 2008, half of those infected were women.
     
  • African women more likely to be infected with HIV than men especially in the 15-24 age group.
     
  • In South Africa one in four pregnant women is HIV positive.
     
  • In 2008, HIV/AIDS associated illnesses caused the deaths of nearly 3 million people worldwide including .28 million children under 15 years old.