New modeling shows that if program coverage is cut in half, 1.1 million more children could contract HIV and 820,000 more could die from AIDS-related causes by 2040, bringing the total number of children to three million infections and 1.8 million deaths.
Even maintaining current service levels would result in 1.9 million new infections and 990,000 AIDS-related child deaths by 2040 due to the slow pace of progress.
“The world was making progress in the HIV response, but persistent gaps remained even before abrupt global funding cuts disrupted services,” said Anurita Bains, UNICEF Associate Director of HIV and AIDS.
“While countries acted quickly to mitigate the impact of funding cuts, ending AIDS in children is at risk without concrete action. The choice is clear: invest today or risk reversing decades of progress and losing millions of young lives.”
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According to the latest data from 2024, before funding cuts disrupted services around the world, 120,000 children aged 0-14 were contracting HIV and 75,000 were dying from AIDS-related causes, the equivalent of around 200 child deaths every day.
Among adolescents aged 15 to 19, 150,000 contracted HIV, about two-thirds of them girls, and girls account for 85 percent of new infections in this age group in sub-Saharan Africa. Only 55 percent of children living with HIV received antiretroviral therapy, compared to 78 percent of adults, leaving about 620,000 children without treatment.
Sub-Saharan Africa continues to bear the heaviest burden, accounting for 88 percent of children living with HIV and more than 80 percent of new AIDS-related child infections and deaths.
Concerns over judicial independence in Pakistan
Pakistan's latest constitutional amendment, adopted without broad consultation, undermines judicial independence and raises serious concerns about military accountability and the rule of law, warned United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk.
Adopted on November 13, the amendment creates a new Federal Constitutional Court (FCC) to handle constitutional cases, effectively stripping the Supreme Court of this function.
It also reviews judicial appointments and transfers, raising concerns about judicial independence, as the President – on the advice of the Prime Minister – has already appointed the first Chief Justice and the first FCC judges.
“These changes, taken together, risk subjecting the judiciary to political interference and executive control,” Türk said. “Neither the executive nor the legislature should be in a position to control or direct the judiciary, and the judiciary should be protected from any form of political influence in its decision-making.”
Erosion of checks and balances
The amendment also establishes lifetime immunity from criminal proceedings and arrest for the President, Field Marshal, Air Force Marshal and Fleet Admiral, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reported.
“Sweeping immunity provisions like these undermine accountability, which is a cornerstone of the human rights framework and democratic control of armed forces under the rule of law,” the UN human rights chief said.
More anti-discrimination laws needed to support minorities
“Diversity is our first teacher,” UN human rights chief Volker Türk said at the opening of the Forum on Minority Issues in Geneva on Thursday.
The forum serves as a global platform for issues of concern to ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities.
Thursday's discussion focused on the root causes of exclusion, discrimination and intergroup tensions.
Legal protections are reversed
Türk lamented that minorities continue to be disproportionately affected by poverty, unemployment and homelessness.
“We see land grabbing and displacement, cultural suppression and even forced evictions from homes and ancestral lands to make way for tourism and commerce,” he said.
He added that even in democratic countries, some governments are revoking legal protections, reducing participation and hiring quotas and authorizing raids and surveillance.
The digital sphere is no better. About 70 percent of people targeted by hate speech on social media tend to belong to minority groups, he continued.
Fight discrimination and hate
To break the “vicious” cycle of discrimination and hatred, it is necessary to adopt more anti-discrimination laws, Türk stressed, adding that less than a quarter of countries have such legislation.
Furthermore, minorities must be invited to participate in politics and the workplace, human rights must be included in educational programs, and minority rights defenders must be protected, he added.
Finally, he called for investing in reliable data systems to hold accountable those who violate minority rights.
