NEW DELHI: HIV burden in the South-East Asia Region remains substantial with 88,000 people newly infected, and around 50,000 people dying of HIV-related causes last year, the WHO said on Monday on the occasion of World AIDS Day.

While about 3.5 million people in the region live with HIV, challenges are compounded by 42 million people living with hepatitis B, seven million with hepatitis C, and 60 million with sexually transmitted infections (STIs), the World Health Organisation (WHO) said.

“Vulnerable populations remain particularly at risk. HIV prevalence rates are higher in the region among men who have sex with men, people who inject drugs, transgenders, sex workers and their partners. Young people, aged 15–24 years, account for nearly one-quarter of new infections in the wider Asia-Pacific region,” said Dr Catharina , Officer-in-Charge, WHO South-East Asia Region (WHO-SEARO).

On World AIDS Day 2025, she said the region “stands united with governments, partners, and communities under the theme ‘Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response.’"

The region, which includes India, has made progress in recent years.

Access and coverage of antiretroviral treatment has reduced deaths by 62% from 2015 to 2024, and new infections declined by 32% in the same time.

While 85% of people with HIV know their status, 74% of those - approximately 2.7 million people - are receiving treatment, and 72% have achieved viral suppression.

While encouraging, she said, they remain short of the global ‘95-95-95’ goal to end AIDS by 2030.

About 88% of the 26,000 pregnant women living with HIV, received antiretroviral drugs to prevent mother-to-child transmission in the region, variations in national coverage ranged from 71% to more than 98%. Similarly, 93% of the 69,000 children living with HIV are receiving antiretroviral drugs regionally, yet treatment coverage varies among countries from 67% to 98%.

Despite gaps, multi-disease elimination approaches remain both feasible and achievable.