West and Central Africa could face an increase in HIV-infected and AIDS-related deaths in a few years due to health care disruptions caused by the new coronavirus pandemic, the UNAIDS executive director warned today. of the UN on AIDS.
Although the rates of HIV carriers and AIDS deaths have been steadily declining over the past decade, the region accounted for 22% of AIDS deaths by 2020.
Some 200,000 people in West and Central Africa became infected with HIV last year, compared to 1.5 million worldwide, according to the United Nations Office on AIDS.
New cases in the region are rising rapidly among vulnerable groups, including young girls and women, gay men, sex workers, drug users and inmates, who do not always have access to preventive measures. and treatment.
UNAIDS chief Winnie Biangima noted that the extent of the impact of the new coronavirus pandemic on HIV is still being investigated, but her office sees examples of the disorder.
“We are quite worried that when all the data for this year (2021) comes, we may see an increase in new cases and that in a few years we may see more deaths,” Biangima told Reuters on Tuesday night. on the sidelines of the Dakar Health Summit.
“We are seeing a decrease in the number of people taking precautionary measures, a decrease in the number of people being treated and an increase in the number of people not receiving treatment. These are not good signs, but we still do not know what the impact will be on new cases and deaths.” “, he underlined.
Health systems in the area have come under pressure from the new coronavirus pandemic, which has forced governments to divert their scarce resources to tackling the pandemic, and measures to stop the spread of the new coronavirus, such as lockdowns, have reduced access to HIV prevention and treatment.
UNAIDS warned last July that global efforts to fight AIDS were declining even before the pandemic broke out and that it now threatens to reverse 10 years or more of progress made by tough efforts against HIV.
Bianca urged other leaders to follow in the footsteps of Senegalese President Maki Sal, who, in his closing remarks in Dakar, increased funding for the Ministry of Health to fight HIV.
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