US Freezes HIV Foreign Aid

The head of Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, Winnie Byanyima, has warned that new HIV infections could jump more than six times by 2029, leading to millions of deaths and the emergence of more resistant strains of the disease, if the United States drops its support for the biggest AIDS program. This warning comes after President Donald Trump's announcement of a 90-day freeze on all foreign assistance. African countries such as Uganda, Mozambique, and Tanzania, which receive nearly $400 million in U.S. aid, are particularly vulnerable, with some, like Kenya and Ethiopia, already experiencing layoffs and terminations of HIV workers. Byanyima emphasized that external funding, primarily from the United States, accounts for about 90% of these countries' HIV programs. She also noted that the loss of U.S. support comes at a critical time, just as a new 'magical prevention tool,' Lenacapavir (Sunlenca), developed by Gilead Sciences, could help end HIV as a public health problem within five years. Byanyima is appealing to the U.S. government to reconsider, highlighting the mutual benefits and the relatively small portion of the U.S. budget that foreign assistance represents.