The number of people in Africa receiving antiretroviral treatment increased from less than 1 million to 7.1 million over seven years, according to a United Nations report which documents the progress in the AIDS response in the world’s second largest continent.

United Nations officials are marking World AIDS Day with a call for building on recent successes and pressing ahead to get to zero – zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths – by 2015.

A reduction of more than 50 per cent in the rate of new HIV infections has been achieved across 25 low- and middle-income countries – more than half in Africa, the region most affected by HIV – according to a new United Nations report, which shows that unprecedented acceleration in the AIDS response is producing results.

African leaders meeting on the sidelines of the 67th session of the United Nations General Assembly called today for innovative solutions to accelerate the response to AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria and to advance health for people on the continent.