Africa: Rethink. Rebuild. Rise. - AIDS 2026 Charts the Next Phase of the HIV Response

What the report says

AllAfrica reports that more than 7,000 scientists, activists, policymakers and community leaders gathered in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, for the opening of the 26th International AIDS Conference, known as AIDS 2026. The six-day meeting is being held under the theme “Rethink. Rebuild. Rise.” and is focused on the next phase of the global HIV response at a time of major scientific progress and growing political uncertainty.

According to the report, International AIDS Society President and AIDS 2026 International Co-Chair Professor Beatriz Grinsztejn said the conference comes as new prevention and treatment tools are advancing, including long-acting medicines and work on simpler treatment options. She also pointed to the 30th anniversary of highly active antiretroviral therapy and the long-term impact of evidence showing that effective treatment prevents transmission. But she warned that nearly nine million people still lack life-saving HIV treatment, describing access as a political and financing failure rather than a scientific one.

AllAfrica says speakers raised concern that funding cuts, geopolitical tensions, stigma, discrimination and attacks on human rights could undermine decades of gains. Grinsztejn linked the choice of Brazil as host to the country’s record on universal access to HIV care, while also noting that Latin America and the Caribbean remain among the regions where new infections are still rising.

UNAIDS Executive Director Winnie Byanyima said the HIV response must adapt to a changed global order and build new coalitions. She argued that science, rights and solidarity remain central to ending AIDS, while warning that rising criminalization and service closures threaten people most affected by HIV.