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According to a report by the United Nations AIDS agency, there is a chance the AIDS epidemic can be brought under control by 2030.

It said the number of new HIV infections and deaths from AIDS were both falling.

However, it called for far more international effort as the “current pace cannot end the epidemic”.

And charity Medecins Sans Frontieres warned most of those in need of HIV drugs still had no access to them.

The report showed that 35 million people around the world were living with HIV.

There were 2.1 million new cases in 2013 – 38% less than the 3.4 million figure in 2001.

AIDS-related deaths have fallen by a fifth in the past three years, standing at 1.5 million a year. South Africa and Ethiopia have particularly improved.

UNAIDS report said the number of new HIV infections and deaths from AIDS were both falling

UNAIDS report said the number of new HIV infections and deaths from AIDS were both falling

Many factors contribute to the improving picture, including increased access to drugs. There has even been a doubling in the number of men opting for circumcision to reduce the risk of spreading or contracting HIV.

While some things are improving, the picture is far from rosy.

Fewer than four in 10 people with HIV are getting life-saving antiretroviral therapy.

And just 15 countries account for three-quarters of all new HIV infections.

The report said: “There have been more achievements in the past five years than in the preceding 23 years.

“There is evidence about what works and where the obstacles remain, more than ever before, there is hope that ending Aids is possible.

“However, a business-as-usual approach or simply sustaining the Aids response at its current pace cannot end the epidemic.”

Michel Sidibe, the executive director of UNAIDS, added: “If we accelerate all HIV scale-up by 2020, we will be on track to end the epidemic by 2030, if not, we risk significantly increasing the time it would take – adding a decade, if not more.”

Dr. Jennifer Cohn, the medical director for Medecins Sans Frontieres’ access campaign, said: “Providing life-saving HIV treatment to nearly 12 million people in the developing world is a significant achievement, but more than half of people in need still do not have access.”

In Nigeria, 80% of people do not have access to treatment.

Dr. Jennifer Cohn added: “We need to make sure no-one is left behind – and yet, in many of the countries where MSF works we’re seeing low rates of treatment coverage, especially in areas of low HIV prevalence and areas of conflict.

“In some countries, people are being started on treatment too late to save their lives, and pregnant women aren’t getting the early support they need.”

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According to a UN report, the number of HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths has fallen dramatically last year.

Death rates fell from 2.3 million during its peak in 2005 to 1.6 million last year, says UNAIDS.

The number of new HIV infections fell by a third since 2001 to 2.3 million.

Among children, the drop was even steeper. In 2001 there were more than half a million new infections. By 2012 the figure had halved to just over a quarter of a million.

The authors put the fall in deaths and infection rates in children down to better access to antiretroviral drugs which help suppress the virus.

Without treatment, people with HIV can go on to develop AIDS which makes simple infections deadly.

By the end of 2012 almost 10 million people in low and middle income countries, including South Africa, Uganda and India, were accessing antiretroviral therapy, according to the report.

The number of HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths has fallen dramatically last year

The number of HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths has fallen dramatically last year

The improved access is being attributed to drugs being more affordable and available in communities, as well as more people coming forward for help.

According to UNAIDS, the world is “closing in” on its Millennium Development Goals to stop and reverse the AIDS epidemic by 2015.

But it says the world can go beyond its target of getting 15 million people on HIV treatment by 2015. The World Health Organization has now revised its guidelines making even more people eligible for treatment.

The report also found that progress has been slow in providing HIV services to people who are most at risk of infection, like those who inject drugs.

And it highlights the need to do more to deal with violence against women and girls. They make up a key group of people vulnerable to infection.

Bev Collins, Health Policy Advisor at Doctors without Borders said: “Huge leaps forward have been made to make sure that millions of people – especially in the developing world – can access lifesaving HIV treatment at an affordable price.

“But this is no time for complacency. We need to keep on rolling out access to better treatment strategies, expanding access to accurate, cost-effective testing, and to care”

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