This year’s World AIDS Day is like no other. It is being celebrated amidst another pandemic, COVID-19, which has swept across the world, devastating health systems. The novel coronavirus pandemic is showing us just how interconnected global health is with other critical issues such as social and economic inequalities. However, as the world turns its full attention to COVID-19, there is a danger that the ongoing HIV/AIDS pandemic could be forgotten and that funding could be reduced. Nevertheless, we cannot rest on our laurels especially now because we are now fighting two colliding epidemics of HIV and COVID-19.
This year, The World Health Organization (WHO) has chosen to focus on “Global solidarity, shared responsibility” as the theme for World AIDS Day. Prof. Nelson Sewankambo, the director of THRiVE and research leader on HIV/AIDS in Uganda, reminds us that despite significant successes, the AIDS emergency is not over. He calls for solidarity of different community groups, dedication of health practitioners and a shared responsibility of all Ugandan people in order to overcome the AIDS scourge.