Children Still Left Behind as HIV Funding Gaps Widen

A woman living with HIV receives medication at a hospital in Zimbabwe.

Children and adolescents living with HIV continue to be left behind in access to early diagnosis, life-saving treatment and care, as shrinking funding threatens to reverse decades of progress, the UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) warned on Friday ahead of World AIDS Day.

New modelling shows that if programme coverage drops by half, an additional 1.1 million children could acquire HIV and 820,000 more could die of AIDS-related causes by 2040 — pushing the total toll among children to three million infections and 1.8 million deaths.

Even maintaining current service levels would still result in 1.9 million new infections and 990,000 AIDS-related deaths among children by 2040, due to the slow pace of progress.

“The world was making progress in the HIV response, but persistent gaps remained even before abrupt global funding cuts disrupted services,” said Anurita Bains, UNICEF Associate Director of HIV and AIDS.

“While countries moved quickly to mitigate the impact of the funding cuts, ending AIDS in children is in jeopardy without focused action. The choice is clear — invest today or risk reversing decades of progress and losing millions of young lives.”

Latest global picture

According to the latest 2024 data, before funding cuts disrupted services globally, 120,000 children aged 0–14 acquired HIV and 75,000 died from AIDS-related causes — the equivalent of about 200 child deaths every day.

Among adolescents aged 15–19, 150,000 acquired HIV, around two-thirds of them girls, with girls accounting for 85 per cent of new infections in this age group in sub-Saharan Africa. Only 55 per cent of children living with HIV received antiretroviral therapy, compared with 78 per cent of adults, leaving an estimated 620,000 children without treatment.

Sub-Saharan Africa continues to bear the heaviest burden, accounting for 88 per cent of children living with HIV and more than 80 per cent of new infections and AIDS-related child deaths.

Concerns over judicial independence in Pakistan

Pakistan’s latest constitutional amendment, adopted without broad consultation, undermines judicial independence and raises serious concerns about military accountability and the rule of law, warned UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.

Adopted on 13 November, the amendment creates a new Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) to handle constitutional cases, effectively stripping the Supreme Court of this responsibility.

It also overhauls judicial appointments and transfers, raising concerns over independence, as the President — advised by the Prime Minister — has already appointed the FCC’s first Chief Justice and judges.

“These changes, taken together, risk subjugating the judiciary to political interference and executive control,” said Mr Türk. “Neither the executive nor the legislature should be in a position to control or direct the judiciary, and the judiciary should be protected from political influence.”

Erosion of checks and balances

The amendment also establishes lifetime immunity from criminal proceedings and arrest for the President, Field Marshal, Marshal of the Air Force and Admiral of the Fleet, reported the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

“Sweeping immunity provisions like these undermine accountability, which is a cornerstone of the human rights framework and democratic control of the armed forces under the rule of law,” said the UN human rights chief.

More anti-discrimination laws needed to support minorities

“Diversity is our earliest teacher,” said Volker Türk at the opening of the Forum on Minority Issues in Geneva on Thursday.

The forum serves as a global platform for issues affecting ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities.

Thursday’s discussion focused on the root causes of exclusion, discrimination and intergroup tensions.

Legal protections rolled back

Mr Türk noted that minorities continue to be disproportionately affected by poverty, unemployment and homelessness.

“We see land grabs and displacement, cultural suppression and even forced evictions from ancestral homes and lands to make way for tourism and commerce,” he said.

He added that even in democratic countries, some governments are rolling back legal protections, reducing quotas for participation and hiring, and authorising raids and surveillance.

The digital space is equally troubling: around 70 per cent of those targeted by hate speech on social media belong to minority groups, he said.

Fighting discrimination and hatred

To break this “vicious” cycle, more countries must adopt anti-discrimination laws, Mr Türk stressed, noting that less than a quarter of states have such legislation.

He said minorities must be included in political and workplace participation, human rights should be taught in educational curricula, and minority rights defenders must be protected.

Finally, he called for investment in reliable data systems to ensure accountability for violations of minority rights.