Women at AIDS risk

Lets have a fresh look at the AIDS epidemic:

* The epidemic remains extremely dynamic, growing and changing character as the virus exploits new opportunities for transmission.* Girls and young women are at greatest risk. As of December 2003, women accounted for nearly 50% of all people living with HIV worldwide, and for 57% in sub-Saharan Africa.* Young people (15–24 years old) account for half of all new HIV infections worldwide; more than 6000 contract the virus each day.* The 2001 UN Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS envisions major progress in delivering comprehensive care services by 2005. However, only minimal coverage has been achieved for care and treatment of HIV-related disease. Current prevention efforts in most low- and middle-income countries come nowhere near the scale of the epidemic.* Achieving the 2005 targets will require urgent, innovative and expanded efforts to strengthen and accelerate the response.

The UN report just released is alarming, to say the least.