Trends

In 2008, about half of the estimated 33.4 million people living with HIV were women and 60% of all newly diagnosed HIV infections were in women.

Of the 2.7 million people who are newly infected, 97% live in low- and middle-income countries and sub-Saharan Africa is home to 71% of those individuals. The most recent prevalence figures estimate that 60% of all HIV infections in sub-Saharan Africa are in women; in North Africa, the Middle East, and the Caribbean, that proportion is closer to 50%.

According to UN reports, in parts of Africa and the Caribbean, women aged 15 to 24 are up to six times more likely to be HIV-positive than young men of the same age. The number of HIV-positive women is also increasing in Asia, Latin America, and Eastern Europe.¹

A recent report issued by WHO, UNAIDS, and UNICEF notes that progress has been made in expanding women's access to HIV testing and treatment. Between 2007 and 2008, HIV testing in pregnant women increased from 15 to 21%; antiretroviral treatment (ART) coverage overall rose from 33 to 42%; and women who received ART to prevent HIV transmission to their babies rose from 35 to 45%. Unfortunately, 31% of women in low- and middle-income countries received single-dose ART for that purpose.²