Ayodeji Ake
An estimated 2.27 million children and adolescents aged 0–19 lived with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) worldwide in 2025, with significant gaps in diagnosis, treatment, and viral suppression continuing to leave younger children particularly vulnerable, United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) said.
The newly published 2026 HIV estimates show that about 240,000 children and adolescents acquired HIV during the year, while 74,000 died from AIDS-related causes.
The situation is particularly concerning among children aged 0–14. According to the estimates, 1.26 million children in this age group were living with HIV in 2025, while 93,000 acquired the virus and 61,000 died from AIDS-related causes.
The figures translate to approximately 255 children acquiring HIV and 167 dying from AIDS-related causes every day.
UNICEF said persistent gaps in access to HIV testing and treatment remained a major challenge.
Globally, only 65 per cent of children aged 0–14 living with HIV knew their status in 2025, compared with 89 per cent among adults.
Similarly, only 55 per cent of children living with HIV were receiving antiretroviral treatment, compared with 79 per cent of adults.
The gap is also reflected in viral suppression, with only 47 per cent of children living with HIV achieving a suppressed viral load.
The estimates were released at a critical time for the global HIV response, as reductions in international financing and disruptions to prevention and community-based services threatened to undermine recent gains.
The UNAIDS Special Report for AIDS 2026, released during the International AIDS Conference in Rio de Janeiro, highlighted the potential impact of declining international funding and disruptions to essential HIV services.
UNICEF warned that the effects could be particularly serious for children and adolescents, who already faced some of the largest gaps in HIV diagnosis and treatment.
The agency said timely monitoring of disruptions to health services would be increasingly important to ensure that children and adolescents did not lose access to essential HIV care.
The 2026 estimates identified four key priorities for strengthening the global HIV response.
These include eliminating the vertical transmission of HIV and accelerating progress towards the triple elimination of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B.
UNICEF also called for urgent action to close treatment gaps among children and adolescents through earlier diagnosis, improved paediatric treatment and stronger continuity of care.
Another priority is preventing new HIV infections among adolescents, particularly adolescent girls, while expanding equitable access to effective HIV prevention and sexual and reproductive health services.
The agency further stressed the need to protect progress amid changes in the global financing landscape by using timely and reliable data to identify emerging service gaps and direct increasingly limited resources to areas of greatest need.
According to UNICEF, the latest estimates provide an important evidence base for measuring progress, identifying persistent weaknesses and detecting disruptions in HIV services.
The agency said strong national data systems and timely, high-quality information would be essential as the global HIV response evolved.
It added that such systems would help governments and partners understand changing needs and ensure that limited resources reachd children and communities most in need.
The estimates were presented by UNICEF Chief Statistician, João and Deputy Director, Data & Analytics, UNICEF Office of Strategy and Evidence, Innocenti, Pedro Azevedo, and Associate Director, HIV/AIDS, Programme Group, Anurita Bains.