How serious is the global AIDS epidemic?
AIDS has killed 25 million people since it first emerged in the early 1980s—more than died in the 20th century’s two World Wars. According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), 33 million people are now living with HIV/AIDS, and roughly 7,400 people are newly infected every day. Women now account for half of new HIV infections worldwide—and 60% in sub-Saharan Africa. In many of the countries hardest hit by AIDS, young people ages 15 to 24 now account for a disproportionate number of new HIV infections. The pandemic has also orphaned at least 15 million children worldwide.
