New HIV infections in Nepal decline rapidly over last 15 years

Kathmandu, Nov 30 An estimated 34,337 adults and children are living with HIV in Nepal, with new infections declining rapidly between 2010 and 2024, Nepal’s Ministry of Health and Population said.

Statistics released by the National Centre for AIDS and STD Control (NCASC) under the Ministry of Health and Population ahead of World AIDS Day on December 1 show that new HIV infections decreased by around 76 per cent during this period.

An estimated 614 new HIV infections occurred in 2024, compared to 2,557 new cases in 2010, according to NCASC. The decline in HIV/AIDS infections in Nepal mirrors the global trend, with new HIV infections falling by 40 per cent during the same period.

Globally, 2.2 million people were newly infected with HIV in 2010, while the number declined to 1.3 million in 2024, according to the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Lok Raj Pandey, senior health education officer, told IANS that the expansion of preventive measures and treatment services in the country helped reduce new infections. “People are more aware of this disease, and they take preventive measures,” he said. “The number of Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) centres has also increased to 96 from only a few over the years.”

In 2024, an estimated 37 children aged below 14 were newly infected, an 86 per cent decrease from 2010, when 260 children were estimated to have contracted HIV.

Of the total number of people living with HIV, 33,279 are adults aged 15 and over. The number of women aged 15 and over living with HIV is 14,000. Heterosexual transmission remains the dominant mode of HIV transmission in Nepal, accounting for 66 per cent of total infections.

Of the total people living with HIV, 26,372 are currently receiving antiretroviral (ARV) therapy, according to NCASC. Nepal is also implementing the testing and treatment approach to achieve the global target of ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030, NCASC said.

Nepal first reported HIV detection in 1988.

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