The World Health Organization (WHO) is urging governments and global health partners to move swiftly in expanding access to new HIV prevention tools, including the twice-yearly injectable lenacapavir as sharp funding cuts threaten to reverse hard-won gains in the global AIDS response.
Marking World AIDS Day under the theme “Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response,” WHO warned that sudden reductions in international aid have already disrupted essential services such as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), HIV testing, treatment and community-led interventions.
In some countries, entire harm-reduction and PrEP programmes have been scaled back or shut down, leaving millions without support.
“We face significant challenges, with cuts to international funding, and prevention stalling,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus.
“At the same time, we have significant opportunities, with exciting new tools with the potential to change the trajectory of the HIV epidemic. Expanding access to those tools for people at risk of HIV everywhere must be priority number one for all governments and partners.”
The renewed push comes as the global HIV response enters a critical moment. In 2024, an estimated 1.3 million new infections were recorded, with key and vulnerable populations bearing a disproportionate burden.
UNAIDS data show that sex workers and transgender women face a 17-fold higher risk of infection, men who have sex with men face an 18-fold higher risk, while people who inject drugs face a 34-fold higher risk. Stigma, discrimination and legal barriers continue to push these groups away from lifesaving services.
Adding to the crisis, an estimated 2.5 million people who used PrEP in 2024 lost access in 2025 due solely to donor funding cuts, according to the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition.
Yet 2025 has also brought new momentum. WHO in July issued guidelines recommending lenacapavir, a highly effective long-acting injectable, as an additional PrEP option.
The drug, administered only twice a year, offers a discreet and convenient alternative for individuals who struggle with daily pills due to stigma or adherence challenges.
“We are entering a new era of powerful innovations in HIV prevention and treatment,” said Dr Tereza Kasaeva, Director of WHO’s Department for HIV, TB, Hepatitis and STIs. “By pairing these advances with decisive action, supporting communities, and removing structural barriers, we can ensure that key and vulnerable populations have full access to life-saving services.”
WHO prequalified lenacapavir for prevention in October, paving the way for national approvals in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Zambia.
The agency is now working with partners including the Gates Foundation, Unitaid, CIFF and the Global Fund to ensure affordable rollout in lower-income countries.
According to WHO, the path to ending AIDS depends on a fully integrated, rights-based approach anchored in primary health care and on ensuring that no community is left behind, even amid global financial uncertainty.
