2011 was a game changing year for the international response to AIDS and HIV, according to the latest report by the United Nations.
The UN says there is is unprecedented scientific progress while political leadership is generating real results.
New HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths have fallen to the lowest levels since the peak of the epidemic around five years ago.
The number of people dying of AIDS fell to to 1.8 million in 2010, down from a peak of 2.2 million around 2005.
At the end of 2010, an estimated 34 million people were living with HIV worldwide, up 17% from 2001.
The fight against AIDS has been particularly successful in sub-Saharan Africa, like here in in Rwanda.
Sub-saharan Africa remains the region most heavily affected by HJIV. With 68 percent of all HIV infections worldwide.
The UN report says there is a notable decline in the rate of new infections. South Africa remains severely affected with an estimated 5.6 million HIV patients.
The number of people living with HIV in Eastern Europe and Central Asia has nearly tripled during the last decade. Russia and Ukraine account for almost 90 percent of the epidemic in this region, largely because of sexual relations between people who inject drugs.
Addressing the need for a global response, the United Nations now is calling for a transformation in the international approach, and is calling for additional investments that need to match the long-term strategic ambitions instead of the piecemeal short-term approach that has been adopted so far.
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