A coalition of Nigerian civil society organisations has strongly condemned a United Nations proposal to dismantle the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS by the end of 2026, warning that doing so would set back decades of progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
The coalition described the proposal as ill-timed and a setback to the UN’s commitment to millions worldwide.
The statement, issued on Sunday, was signed by the Network of People Living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria; Nigeria Key Population Health and Rights Network; International Community of Women Living with HIV – West Africa (ICW-WA); Association of Women Living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria; Association of Positive Youth Living with HIV and AIDS in Nigeria; and the Civil Society Network for HIV and AIDS in Nigeria.
The Nigerian Coalition of Community Networks and Civil Society Organisations is a unified voice of community-led and civil society groups, advocates, and health rights defenders committed to advancing the HIV response, protecting vulnerable populations, and holding institutions accountable.
UNAIDS leads and inspires the world to achieve its shared vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination, and zero AIDS-related deaths.
On September 18, the UN Secretary-General, António Guterres, in his report under Workstream 3 of the UN80 Initiative titled “Shifting Paradigms: United to Deliver,” said, “We plan to sunset UNAIDS by the end of 2026. This would entail mainstreaming capacity and expertise into relevant entities of the UN development system in 2027.”
The UN80 initiative is the UN’s system-wide reform effort, launched by Guterres in March 2025 as the UN marked its 80th anniversary.
Meanwhile, global HIV advocates and civil society groups have also condemned the UN80 proposal to dismantle UNAIDS, warning that it risks millions of new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths, weakens advocacy for key populations under attack, betrays the global goal of ending AIDS by 2030, and could derail progress on the Sustainable Development Goals.
The Nigerian coalition noted that while global efforts have reduced HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths over recent decades, progress remains uneven across countries.
UNAIDS, the coalition argued, has been guiding governments and communities to build inclusive, sustainable HIV responses largely supported by domestic resources.
“We, the Coalition of Community Networks and Civil Society Organizations in Nigeria, express our profound alarm and deep concern about the recommendation contained in the UN80 Initiative to ‘sunset UNAIDS by the end of 2026’ as part of a broader restructuring of the United Nations system. We view the attempt to dismantle the UN agency dedicated to the global HIV/AIDS response as ill-timed and a setback that signals a profound departure from the UN’s commitment to millions of lives worldwide.
“While global efforts have significantly reduced HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths over the past decades, progress remains uneven across countries and regions.
“The proposal to dismantle UNAIDS is not only ill-advised but dangerously shortsighted and a betrayal of communities living with and affected by HIV.
“UNAIDS has been advancing a transition path that prioritizes inclusive, multisectoral, and sustainable national HIV responses, led by governments and communities, and funded largely by domestic resources.
“AIDS is not over, and the global AIDS response has been upset in recent times so much that it requires deliberate and concerted efforts to achieve the SDG target of ending AIDS by 2030,” the groups said.
The coalition warned that removing UNAIDS at this stage could reverse hard-won gains, weaken donor confidence from major partners such as PEPFAR and the Global Fund, and create uncertainty in communities still grappling with the epidemic.
They stressed that UNAIDS is the only UN agency that places communities and civil society at the center of its mandate and governance.
“To contemplate dismantling it is to betray the very people it was created to serve, especially women and young people living with HIV and key populations who rely on its leadership, advocacy, and convening power.
“Removing this essential pillar of the global AIDS response will also cost lives, undermine the coherence of the HIV response, and weaken the partnerships with civil society, communities, government, and partners which have been central to UNAIDS,” the coalition added.
The coalition raised unresolved questions over who would coordinate the global HIV response if UNAIDS is dismantled, whether the UN has abandoned its 2030 pledge, and if the move signals a retreat from global solidarity.
It called on Guterres and Member States to reject the proposal to sunset UNAIDS, strengthen UNAIDS’ mandate and core functions, and protect the integrity of the UN80 reform process without undermining the HIV response.
“We acknowledge the importance of reforming and modernising the UN system. However, we reject any attempt to use the UN80 process as a vehicle to disrupt or dismantle progress in the global HIV response.
“We urge the Secretary-General to intervene decisively to halt the confusion and uncertainty this proposal has caused among stakeholders, especially communities, civil society, and donors. The path forward must reaffirm UNAIDS’ role and accelerate efforts to achieve the goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
“We stand ready to engage with the UN and Member States to co-create solutions that preserve UNAIDS’ legacy and ensure no one is left behind,” the coalition concluded.
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