Championing zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination, and zero AIDS-related deaths worldwide | #EndAIDS | Executive Director: @Winnie_Byanyima
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“The one organization that stood with people living with HIV, key populations, communities and governments to help them maintain HIV services, transform their services and integrate into the broader health system was UNAIDS.”
At #UNGA81, UNAIDS Chief of Staff Mahesh Mahalingam recaps UNAIDS' flagship event on the future of the UNAIDS Joint Programme.
The message: UNAIDS will continue to stand with countries and communities as they work to end AIDS.
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At #UNGA81, Mikheil Sarjveladze, Minister of Internally Displaced Persons from the Occupied Territories, Health, Labour and Social Affairs of Georgia, joined UNAIDS, Botswana and the Netherlands' high-level discussion on the future of the UNAIDS Joint Programme.
He highlighted the continued need for strong coordination, information-sharing and resilient public-health systems, particularly as countries face the risk of new outbreaks and other crises. With the goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030 still unfinished, he stressed the importance of continuing with UNAIDS to meet the challenges ahead.
Read more about the high-level event: unaids.org/en/resources/pres…
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UNAIDS Global retweeted
Congratulations on 20 years, @UNITAID. At a time of profound change in global health, your work continues to show that innovation matters only if people can access it. Thank you for two decades of bringing life-saving innovations to the communities that need them most.
“The difference between a treatment that arrives and one that does not is the difference between life and death.”
As Unitaid marks 20 years, Executive Director Dr Philippe Duneton says access must be the test of global health.
Read the statement: ow.ly/wzKL50ZQvKR
#UNGA81
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The Netherlands has been a partner of UNAIDS since its beginnings.
At #UNGA81, the Netherlands co-hosted a high-level event with UNAIDS and Botswana to reflect on the future of the Joint Programme and what is needed to sustain the progress of the global HIV response towards ending AIDS by 2030.
Pascalle Grotenhuis, Vice Minister for International Cooperation in @DutchMFA, highlighted the results of more than three decades of collective action, and the importance of continuing that partnership. “In the 30 plus years that UNAIDS has existed, a lot has been achieved. This progress shows that a joint AIDS response works.”
The Netherlands was there at the start. And, she reaffirmed, it remains committed to ending AIDS today.
Read more about the high-level event: unaids.org/en/resources/pres…
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At #UNGA81 in New York, the Government of Benin 🇧🇯 (@gouvbenin) signed a new €544,000 contribution to support UNAIDS’ work in the country in 2026–2027.
At a time when international financing for health and development is under pressure, this contribution demonstrates Benin’s national leadership and commitment to sustaining progress against HIV.
The investment will strengthen UNAIDS’ work in Benin, including data and analysis, community engagement and coordination, helping ensure people can continue to access lifesaving HIV services and that the country remains on track towards ending AIDS by 2030.
UNAIDS Country Director for Benin @moualachristia1 shares a message from #UNGA81 ⬇️
unaids.org/en/resources/pres…
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At #UNGA81, Florence Anam of @gnpplus spoke about why continued UNAIDS political leadership matters to the communities at the centre of the response.
“The community work we do cannot be debated. It will exist with your help. It has always existed with UNAIDS political leadership and must continue to.”
Watch Florence’s message on the role of UNAIDS leadership and communities in the next chapter of the HIV response.
At #UNGA81, governments, communities, UN leaders and global health partners gathered to discuss the transformation of the Joint UN Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS) and what is needed to sustain progress towards ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
The discussion comes as the UN undergoes major reforms and the global health landscape is changing, with countries facing constrained financing, widening inequalities and growing pressure on health systems.
For UNAIDS Executive Director @Winnie_Byanyima, transformation is about strengthening country ownership: “Ultimately, transformation is not only about integrating UNAIDS into the UN system, it’s about integrating the AIDS response into stronger national institutions.”
Botswana’s Minister of Health Stephen Modise, reflected on what the HIV response has achieved through political leadership, communities, science and partnership.
“Our journey has shown what is possible when political leadership, communities, science, and partnership come together with common purpose and coordinated support. We would not have reached this point without the Joint Programme.”
As UNAIDS transforms, participants highlighted the importance of preserving the functions that have helped drive progress: political leadership, coordination, accountability, community engagement and support to countries.
The message was clear: transformation must help sustain the gains of the HIV response and support countries and communities to finish the job of ending AIDS.
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What does it really mean to be prepared for a pandemic?
It’s more than laboratories, surveillance and stockpiles.
As Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS, told the High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response, preparedness must mean enabling people to act on public health advice.
Because telling a woman to stay home during a pandemic isn’t realistic if doing so means her children won’t eat.
That means pandemic preparedness also needs social protection, community-led services, rights, data, financing and systems that reach the people most at risk.
We have the science. Now we need the solidarity and systems to make that science work
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Are we measuring pandemic preparedness the right way?
We asked Matthew Kavanagh , Director and Associate Professor at Georgetown University’s Center for Global Health Policy and Politics and a member of the Global Council on Inequality, AIDS, and Pandemics, ahead of the High-Level Meeting on Pandemic Prevention, Preparedness and Response at #UNGA81.
His take: having the laboratories, surveillance systems and health workforces is not enough.
If inequality means those capacities cannot be deployed effectively when a pandemic hits, then inequality has to be part of how we think about preparedness.
So what would a new approach to pandemic preparedness look like?
Mr Kavannaugh shares what he hopes comes out of this week’s high-level meeting — and why the world needs more than another declaration.
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At #UNGA81, UNAIDS, Botswana and the Netherlands convened governments, communities, UN leaders and global health partners to reflect on the future of the UNAIDS and its role in helping countries deliver on the commitment to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
For Julia Martin, Head of Strategy at @GlobalFund, partnerships are central to that work. She highlighted the importance of coordinated investment and collaboration to help countries sustain progress and achieve the goals set out in the 2026 Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS.
“The Global Fund depends on UNAIDS,” she said, underscoring the importance of a strong partnership as countries turn global commitments into action.
She also highlighted the importance of preserving UNAIDS unique governance structure, centering communities at the heart of decision making around the global HIV response.
Read more about UNAIDS' event at #UNGA81: unaids.org/en/resources/pres……
At #UNGA81, governments, communities, UN leaders and global health partners gathered to discuss the transformation of the Joint UN Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS) and what is needed to sustain progress towards ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
The discussion comes as the UN undergoes major reforms and the global health landscape is changing, with countries facing constrained financing, widening inequalities and growing pressure on health systems.
For UNAIDS Executive Director @Winnie_Byanyima, transformation is about strengthening country ownership: “Ultimately, transformation is not only about integrating UNAIDS into the UN system, it’s about integrating the AIDS response into stronger national institutions.”
Botswana’s Minister of Health Stephen Modise, reflected on what the HIV response has achieved through political leadership, communities, science and partnership.
“Our journey has shown what is possible when political leadership, communities, science, and partnership come together with common purpose and coordinated support. We would not have reached this point without the Joint Programme.”
As UNAIDS transforms, participants highlighted the importance of preserving the functions that have helped drive progress: political leadership, coordination, accountability, community engagement and support to countries.
The message was clear: transformation must help sustain the gains of the HIV response and support countries and communities to finish the job of ending AIDS.
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At #UNGA81, Douglas Bosire, CEO of @nsdcc_kenya, highlighted the leadership, advocacy, coordination, accountability, data and community engagement functions of UNAIDS and stressed “What among these core mandates that have brought us this far must we preserve?”
“Let us run these 200 kilometers together, with all the energy, let’s front load the efforts, and let us preserve the core functions of the Joint Programme in the hub and at the country level.”
At #UNGA81, governments, communities, UN leaders and global health partners gathered to discuss the transformation of the Joint UN Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS) and what is needed to sustain progress towards ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
The discussion comes as the UN undergoes major reforms and the global health landscape is changing, with countries facing constrained financing, widening inequalities and growing pressure on health systems.
For UNAIDS Executive Director @Winnie_Byanyima, transformation is about strengthening country ownership: “Ultimately, transformation is not only about integrating UNAIDS into the UN system, it’s about integrating the AIDS response into stronger national institutions.”
Botswana’s Minister of Health Stephen Modise, reflected on what the HIV response has achieved through political leadership, communities, science and partnership.
“Our journey has shown what is possible when political leadership, communities, science, and partnership come together with common purpose and coordinated support. We would not have reached this point without the Joint Programme.”
As UNAIDS transforms, participants highlighted the importance of preserving the functions that have helped drive progress: political leadership, coordination, accountability, community engagement and support to countries.
The message was clear: transformation must help sustain the gains of the HIV response and support countries and communities to finish the job of ending AIDS.
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At a high-level event co-hosted by UNAIDS, Botswana and the Netherlands at #UNGA81, governments, communities, UN leaders and global health partners discussed the future of the UNAIDS Joint Programme and what is needed to sustain progress towards ending AIDS.
UN Deputy Secretary-General @AminaJMohammed highlighted the Joint Programme’s contribution over more than three decades, saying the global HIV response is “among the finest achievements of the UN.”
The discussion underscored the need to preserve the Joint Programme’s core functions: political leadership, coordination and convening, data and accountability, support for country leadership, and meaningful community engagement.
unaids.org/en/resources/pres…
At #UNGA81, governments, communities, UN leaders and global health partners gathered to discuss the transformation of the Joint UN Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS) and what is needed to sustain progress towards ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
The discussion comes as the UN undergoes major reforms and the global health landscape is changing, with countries facing constrained financing, widening inequalities and growing pressure on health systems.
For UNAIDS Executive Director @Winnie_Byanyima, transformation is about strengthening country ownership: “Ultimately, transformation is not only about integrating UNAIDS into the UN system, it’s about integrating the AIDS response into stronger national institutions.”
Botswana’s Minister of Health Stephen Modise, reflected on what the HIV response has achieved through political leadership, communities, science and partnership.
“Our journey has shown what is possible when political leadership, communities, science, and partnership come together with common purpose and coordinated support. We would not have reached this point without the Joint Programme.”
As UNAIDS transforms, participants highlighted the importance of preserving the functions that have helped drive progress: political leadership, coordination, accountability, community engagement and support to countries.
The message was clear: transformation must help sustain the gains of the HIV response and support countries and communities to finish the job of ending AIDS.
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Yesterday in New York, the Government of Benin and the UNAIDS Secretariat signed a Protocol of Agreement, with Benin committing €544,042 to support UNAIDS’ work in the country through 2026–2027.
The contribution is a concrete demonstration of Benin’s leadership and shared responsibility for sustaining its HIV response — particularly at a time when international health financing is under pressure.
Since 2001, UNAIDS has worked alongside the Government of Benin, communities, civil society and development partners to strengthen the HIV response and expand access to prevention, treatment and support.
As Benjamin Hounkpatin, Minister of Health of Benin, said:
“It is more than a financing agreement; it is proof that a steadfast partnership, sustained over time, saves lives.”
Benin joins a growing group of countries investing directly in UNAIDS’ work, reinforcing a model built around country leadership, national ownership and sustainable partnerships.
The HIV response is strongest when countries are empowered to lead it — and UNAIDS is committed to being a partner in that work.
Read the full press release: unaids.org/en/resources/pres…
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Three months ago, 149 countries came together to adopt a new Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS.
This week at #UNGA81, UNAIDS has been asking:
What will it take to turn those commitments into results — and what does UNAIDS need to look like to help make that happen?
Yesterday, UNAIDS brought governments and partners together with Botswana and the Netherlands for a ministerial roundtable on the transformation of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS. The conversation focused on how a transformed UNAIDS can remain fit for purpose — continuing to provide political leadership, coordination and support for countries and communities as the global HIV response enters a new phase.
That conversation sits within a much bigger agenda.
From sustainable financing and tackling inequalities to health sovereignty, local production and equitable access to innovation, one question has run through the week: how do we build HIV responses that countries can lead and sustain?
The HIV response also has lessons to offer far beyond HIV — from pandemic preparedness and community leadership to making sure scientific progress reaches the people who need it.
Angeli Achrekar, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director, Programmes, also joined Côte d’Ivoire’s high-level conversation on health sovereignty, health financing and universal health coverage, adding to the week’s focus on sustainable, country-led health systems.
And later in the day, the signing of a Protocol of Agreement between the Government of Benin and the UNAIDS Secretariat put that country-led partnership into practice.
The commitments have been made. Now comes the work of turning them into lasting results — and ensuring UNAIDS is ready to help make that happen.
That is the conversation UNAIDS has been bringing to #UNGA81.
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UNAIDS Global retweeted
So pleased to meet with H.E. President @duma_boko 🇧🇼 yesterday. Truly humbling to hear him say that even in the current tight financial context, @UNAIDS must be maintained or enhanced because Botswana and other high burden countries need UNAIDS country level support.
@BWPresidency #UNGA81 #UnitedToEndAIDS
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At the UNAIDS transformation event on the sidelines of #UNGA81, Keren Dunaway @ngopcb, reflects on the progress made and the role of communities, activism and UNAIDS in steering that progress.
As the UNAIDS Joint Programme transforms, communities must remain at the centre. Keren calls on Member States and partners to match political commitment with predictable, sustained financing, support a transformed Joint Programme and protect the multisectoral HIV response.
Because the HIV response has shown that communities are not just beneficiaries. They are leaders, partners and essential to delivering and sustaining the response.
At #UNGA81, governments, communities, UN leaders and global health partners gathered to discuss the transformation of the Joint UN Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS) and what is needed to sustain progress towards ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
The discussion comes as the UN undergoes major reforms and the global health landscape is changing, with countries facing constrained financing, widening inequalities and growing pressure on health systems.
For UNAIDS Executive Director @Winnie_Byanyima, transformation is about strengthening country ownership: “Ultimately, transformation is not only about integrating UNAIDS into the UN system, it’s about integrating the AIDS response into stronger national institutions.”
Botswana’s Minister of Health Stephen Modise, reflected on what the HIV response has achieved through political leadership, communities, science and partnership.
“Our journey has shown what is possible when political leadership, communities, science, and partnership come together with common purpose and coordinated support. We would not have reached this point without the Joint Programme.”
As UNAIDS transforms, participants highlighted the importance of preserving the functions that have helped drive progress: political leadership, coordination, accountability, community engagement and support to countries.
The message was clear: transformation must help sustain the gains of the HIV response and support countries and communities to finish the job of ending AIDS.
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At #UNGA81, governments, communities, UN leaders and global health partners gathered to discuss the transformation of the Joint UN Programme on AIDS (UNAIDS) and what is needed to sustain progress towards ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
The discussion comes as the UN undergoes major reforms and the global health landscape is changing, with countries facing constrained financing, widening inequalities and growing pressure on health systems.
For UNAIDS Executive Director @Winnie_Byanyima, transformation is about strengthening country ownership: “Ultimately, transformation is not only about integrating UNAIDS into the UN system, it’s about integrating the AIDS response into stronger national institutions.”
Botswana’s Minister of Health Stephen Modise, reflected on what the HIV response has achieved through political leadership, communities, science and partnership.
“Our journey has shown what is possible when political leadership, communities, science, and partnership come together with common purpose and coordinated support. We would not have reached this point without the Joint Programme.”
As UNAIDS transforms, participants highlighted the importance of preserving the functions that have helped drive progress: political leadership, coordination, accountability, community engagement and support to countries.
The message was clear: transformation must help sustain the gains of the HIV response and support countries and communities to finish the job of ending AIDS.
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What if the lessons of the HIV response could help reshape how Africa prepares for the next pandemic?
That is the bigger conversation UNAIDS is helping bring together.
A few weeks ago, through the SADC–China Strategic Exchange on Regional Pharmaceutical Manufacturing and Health Security, UNAIDS brought governments, regional institutions, industry and partners together to work on the practical building blocks of stronger pharmaceutical manufacturing in Southern Africa — from technology transfer and skills development to investment and regional partnerships.
Yesterday at #UNGA81, UNAIDS brought that conversation to the political level at the Africa Leadership: Health Sovereignty, HIV and Pandemic Preparedness event, asking: what will it take for Africa to have the capacity to produce and access the health technologies it needs?
African leaders, communities and partners explored what it takes to turn manufacturing capacity into sustainable access — through stronger regional markets, pooled procurement, local production, technology transfer and effective regulation.
Douglas Bosire, CEO of the National Syndemic Diseases Control Council of Kenya, captured the importance of bringing these conversations together:
“Bold political commitment and leadership is the key to resolving some of these issues that we talk about here.”
This is where UNAIDS brings a unique perspective.
The HIV response has shown what can happen when political leadership, communities, science, innovation and partnerships come together to overcome barriers to access.
Now, those lessons can inform a wider conversation about who can access innovation, who can produce it, who can shape it and who has the capacity to respond.
And UNAIDS is helping bring those voices together.
From HIV. To health sovereignty. To pandemic preparedness.
At #UNGA81, African leaders, scientists, communities, governments and global partners came together to discuss how Africa can strengthen its capacity to produce the medicines and health technologies it needs — for HIV, AIDS and future pandemics.
UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima @Winnie_Byanyima opened with a challenge: “Amazing science without access will not improve people’s health.”
The science is moving fast — from long-acting HIV medicines to new diagnostics and shorter treatments. But the question is how to make sure that innovation reaches people everywhere.
For Nardos Bekele-Thomas, Director General of AUDA-NEPAD @nardosbthomas, the direction is clear: “The vision is not missing. What’s needed now is alignment and investment.”
That means stronger African markets, local manufacturing, technology transfer and regulatory capacity.
Côte d’Ivoire’s Vice President Tiémoko Meyliet Koné stressed that health sovereignty does not mean isolation. Countries need to work together to expand production, innovate and transfer technology.
And the conversation kept coming back to people.
Florence Anam, Co-Executive Director at the Global Network of People Living with HIV [@gnpplus], reminded the room: “Availability isn’t access.” Stigma, discrimination and barriers to health services still determine whether people can benefit from scientific progress.
South Africa’s Deputy Minister of Health, Joseph Phaahla [@HealthZA], highlighted another piece of the puzzle: local manufacturing needs predictable demand, pooled procurement and investment to be sustainable.
From Brazil, Adriano Massuda, Executive Secretary, Ministry of Health, Brazil [@Adriano_Massuda ], reinforced the point: “Scientific progress alone is not enough.” Strong public health systems, community leadership and local production matter too.
And international partners called for a different model of cooperation — one that invests in African institutions and ensures Africa is part of the process from the beginning.
The message from the room was clear:
Africa cannot just buy. Africa must be able to produce, innovate and shape the future of global health.
The systems being built through the HIV response can also strengthen Africa’s preparedness for the pandemics of tomorrow.
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Amid a changing global health architecture, what does the transformation of the UNAIDS Joint Programme mean for the future of the HIV response?
At #UNGA81, UNAIDS, Botswana and the Netherlands brought together governments, the UN, civil society and health partners to discuss what a transformed Joint Programme must deliver.
Botswana’s Health Minister Stephen Modise reflected on the country’s journey and the role of UNAIDS in bringing political leadership, communities, science and partnership together.
As UNAIDS transforms, he stressed the importance of preserving the political voice, technical expertise, coordination and community-centred approaches that have been central to the HIV response.
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🎙️ #OAFLADatUNGA81: “A Conversation on the Impact of High-Level Advocacy in Africa.”
Featuring H.E. Monica Geingos @FirstLadyNam3 , 3rd First Lady of Namibia & ONE Foundation Chair; H.E. Amb. Liberata Mulamula, AU Special Envoy on Women, Peace & Security @_AfricanUnion ; H.E. Winnie Byanyima @Winnie_Byanyima , UNAIDS Executive Director; and Ms. Sonia Ndimbira, former OAFLAD Executive Secretary & Lead, Africa Reach @AfricaREACH1 .
▶️ Follow the conversation here:
piped.video/live/MdTmE-lbbOw…
At the #UNGA81 in New York, AU Special Envoy on #WPS, H.E. Amb. Liberata Mulamula, joined the high-level side event, “OAFLAD: A Legacy of Leadership Delivering for Women & Girls” and spoke on the panel, “A Legacy in Conversation: The Impact of High-Level Advocacy in Africa.”
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