AIDS causes the deaths of approximately 8,200 people every single day, the majority of them in poor countries.

International trade rules mean that drugs to treat the disease are too expensive for most poor people; the scope of the disease means that parents die and children are left both orphaned and head of the family; badly maintained infrastructures mean there are no doctors or health clinics for over 30 kilometres.

ActionAid has been working on HIV/AIDS since 1987, giving practical support to people living with the disease in 23 countries, as well as campaigning and lobbying rich governments and international institutions to make access to drugs, care and treatment fair and unbiased.

In Africa a shocking 60 million people have been directly affected by the epidemic. We are working with the governments of Ethiopia, Rwanda, Burundi and Ghana to establish National AIDS Commissions and community support groups that act as lifelines in hard-hit regions.

In Asia, the virus is now spreading even faster than in Africa, with 7.2 million people infected. We have expanded our work across the region to help vulnerable people, such as trafficked women and girls forced into prostitution, to fight for affordable treatment and access to AIDS prevention information.