Newly published 2025 HIV estimates reveal the staggering burden still faced by children, adolescents, girls and pregnant women – and signal a situation poised to worsen. A historic funding crisis is placing millions of lives at even greater risk, threatening to reverse gains and deepen the inequalities already driving HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths.
The 2025 estimates show that of the estimated 40.8 million people living with HIV worldwide in 2024, 2.42 million were children aged 0-19. Each day in 2024, approximately 712 children became infected with HIV and approximately 250 children died from AIDS-related causes, mostly due to inadequate access to HIV prevention, care and treatment services.
The burden remains heaviest in sub-Saharan Africa, which accounted for 61 per cent of the 630,000 AIDS-related deaths globally in 2024. And adolescent girls and young women continue to be disproportionately affected. Over 210,000 adolescent girls and young women aged 15–24 acquired HIV last year — an average of 570 new infections every day.
These figures help us understand the HIV epidemic and reflect the urgent need for targeted investments and equity-focused strategies — especially for those being left furthest behind. This approach supports governments and communities to do the following:
- Eliminate vertical transmission of HIV, and drive for triple elimination of HIV, syphilis and hepatitis B.
- Close the treatment gap for children and adolescents living with HIV by integrating early infant diagnosis and optimizing new paediatric regimens.
- Prevent new HIV infections among adolescent girls and improve access to quality sexual and reproductive health services.
Looking ahead, UNICEF and UNAIDS are collaborating on a new analysis using the 2025 estimates and updated modeling to understand the future impacts of the current funding landscape. Preliminary scenarios show increased child mortality and rising HIV infections among children and adolescents if the current trajectory continues. A short report from this joint analysis will be released later in August 2025.
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