DR Congo Launches Drive To End HIV In Children By 2030

While 91% of HIV-positive adults in DRC get treatment, only 44% of children do — a long-standing gap the country now aims to close.

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has launched a bold new national initiative to eliminate AIDS among children by 2030 – a move hailed by the United Nations as “a beacon of hope” amid growing global funding constraints.

“Our country can no longer tolerate children being born and growing up with HIV, when tools exist to prevent, detect, and effectively treat this infection,” President Félix Tshisekedi declared at a recent government conference in the southeastern Lualaba province, as he launched the five-year initiative.

Backed by an initial commitment of $18 million in national funds, the Presidential Initiative to End Paediatric AIDS will focus on political leadership, systems strengthening, and inclusive healthcare access, particularly for children, adolescents, and pregnant women.

It also aligns with the DRC’s global commitments under Sustainable Development Goal 3 (SDG 3) to ensure healthy lives and promote well-being for all.

The initiative marks a renewed commitment by the DRC to address children’s limited access to HIV prevention and treatment services.

While the DRC has made notable progress in adult HIV response – with 91 per cent of adults living with HIV now having access to antiretroviral treatment – children continue to lag far behind.

Only 44 per cent of children living with HIV in the country currently receive lifesaving treatment, a figure that has remained stagnant for over a decade.

Every year, thousands of Congolese children are still infected, often due to a lack of screening among pregnant women, depriving the health system of a crucial opportunity to prevent mother-to-child transmission and to save mothers' lives.

“The eradication of paediatric AIDS is a moral imperative, an imperative of social justice, and an indicator of dignity,” said President Tshisekedi.

The Presidential Initiative focuses on four core areas:

1. Improving early detection and treatment of HIV for children, adolescents, and pregnant women

2. Preventing new infections in children, adolescents, and mothers

3. Guaranteeing systematic and immediate treatment for those diagnosed

4. Removing structural barriers hindering young people’s access to health services

The UN Joint Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) praised the initiative as an example of national leadership urgently needed to close critical gaps in the global HIV response.

Susan Kasedde, UNAIDS Country Director in the DRC, described the initiative as “a breath of fresh air” at a time when global development financing is under strain.

“At a time when development financing is experiencing turbulence and risks jeopardising the systems that support the most vulnerable, President Tshisekedi’s leadership initiative is a beacon of hope,” she said.

According to UNAIDS, recent funding cuts are threatening critical HIV services, with stockpiles of medication and condoms feared to run out within months. Key areas such as antenatal testing, paediatric treatment, and data quality monitoring have also been impacted.