PHNOM PENH, 20 July 2017—A new UNAIDS report on the global HIV epidemic finds     57 000 of people living with HIV are accessing antiretroviral therapy in Cambodia, which is 80% of all people estimated to be living with HIV. This is more people than ever before and the highest HIV treatment coverage for Asia and the Pacific. It is a huge achievement for a country, which had one of the fastest-growing AIDS epidemics in the region 20 years ago. The new report Ending AIDS: progress towards the 90-90-90 targets was launched at an event in Paris, France on 20 July.

The treatment scale up is due to the political leadership and commitment of the government of Cambodia which has made ending AIDS a top public health priority. The government has decentralized HIV services which are now available even in remote rural areas. In 2016, the country adopted a strategy to treat everyone as soon as they are diagnosed with HIV.

Reaching the global 90-90-90 targets is a cornerstone of Cambodia’s national AIDS response: that’s 90% of people knowing their HIV status, 90% of people who know their status accessing treatment and 90% of people on treatment being virally suppressed. Ending AIDS gives a detailed analysis of progress and challenges towards achieving the 90-90-90 targets.

Cambodia is one of only seven countries worldwide to have already achieved the 90-90-90 targets which translates into 73% of all people living with HIV being virally suppressed (that means that their viral load it is almost undetectable and the likelihood of onward HIV transmission is minimal).

“Cambodia is to be congratulated for reaching this global target three years before the world’s deadline,” said Vladanka Andreeva, UNAIDS Cambodia Country Director. “This shows that the country’s strong leadership, commitment and engagement with communities is having phenomenal results.”

The 90-90-90 targets are included in the country’s national HIV strategy for 2016-2020. With technical assistance from the United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, UNAIDS and the World Health Organization, Cambodia is undertaking a comprehensive effort to strengthen its national HIV strategic information system and link all HIV-related databases within a single system. This enhanced data system will play a key role in identifying and closing gaps in testing and treatment and ensure progress toward reaching the national goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2025, five years earlier than the target in the the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.

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Contact

UNAIDS Cambodia | Vladanka Andreeva | tel.+855 23 219340| andreevaa@unaids.org

UNAIDS Regional Office in Bangkok | Saya Oka | tel. +66 2680 4128 | okas@unaids.org

UNAIDS

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths. UNAIDS unites the efforts of 11 UN organizations—UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, UN Women, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank—and works closely with global and national partners towards ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 as part of the Sustainable Development Goals. Learn more at unaids.org and connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube.