Dear World Leaders,

We, the undersigned scientists, academics, advocates, clinicians, program implementers, elected officials, and public health leaders, issue this collective Call to Action on the occasion of the 13th IAS Conference on HIV Science (IAS 2025) in Kigali, Rwanda.

For over two decades, the global community has united to fight the HIV pandemic, achieving remarkable progress. New acquisitions and AIDS-related deaths have fallen sharply, and millions of people are on life-saving treatment. Yet these gains are fragile, and demand renewed commitment from all nations. While this has been a worldwide effort, one country – the United States – played an outsized role through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), helping build capacity in many nations. Additionally, the Global Fund has played a critical role in supporting locally led responses, investing in systems and solutions shaped by communities most affected by HIV. Regional mechanisms, such as the African Union, have stepped up to coordinate action, foster accountability, and champion homegrown solutions. Together, these efforts have built a foundation for a more just and resilient HIV response.

However, today that legacy hangs in the balance. Recent setbacks in the U.S. and several other countries – policy reversals, funding disruptions, and attacks on vulnerable communities – have put the HIV response at risk. Treatment interruptions are increasing, and prevention programs are stalling, leading to more illness and new acquisitions. Without immediate action, hard-won victories could unravel.

It is not too late to course correct. But doing so will require urgent action grounded in science, equity, and global solidarity. We must adapt outdated models, unlock new financing and partnerships, embrace innovation, and amplify the voices of those most affected. Critically, leadership of HIV programs and research must shift closer to home – to local scientists, health providers, and community advocates who understand their communities’ needs. In this spirit, we call on all stakeholders – governments, multilateral organizations, philanthropies, and civil society worldwide – to reaffirm HIV as a shared global priority. Achieving this requires a commitment to new partnership approaches, sustained research, scaled prevention, expanded treatment, human rights protections, and science-driven policy grounded in global solidarity. We urge you to deliver on promises by recommitting to five key principles that will reinvigorate the fight against HIV:

1. Embrace Meaningful Partnerships
No country can end the HIV epidemic alone. Progress depends on respectful, mutual partnerships that live up to commitments and deliver results for all populations – especially those most in need. We must preserve international solidarity and scientific collaboration while promoting country ownership and data sovereignty. Strong partnerships, backed by robust investment, enable HIV treatment and prevention programs that are country-led, community-driven, integrated into national health systems, and built for long-term sustainability.

2. Support Global HIV Research
Continued scientific innovation is essential to defeating HIV. While tremendous progress has been made in HIV prevention and treatment, a vaccine remains essential to achieving a durable end to the epidemic. Recent advances show promise in this arena, and we cannot afford to stall. Over the decades, investment in HIV research has driven breakthroughs that extend beyond the virus itself – from improved vaccines to cutting-edge treatments and diagnostics benefiting other diseases. International collaboration in science has built research capacity on every continent. We must sustain and expand support for HIV science worldwide – including funding regional centers of excellence and training the next generation of scientists – to ensure discovery is truly a shared endeavor. Collaborative research with community input and open data sharing will speed the next wave of HIV prevention and treatment tools and, ultimately, a cure.

3. Prioritize HIV Prevention
Prevention is the cornerstone of ending the HIV epidemic. Every person – no matter where they live – should have access to effective prevention options and be empowered to choose the methods that suit them best. Yet, prevention coverage today is far below what is needed despite the availability of innovations that are effective in preventing HIV. All countries and partners must urgently accelerate the rollout of proven prevention tools, including condoms, harm reduction services, oral pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP), and newer long-acting methods. Although tools like PrEP have existed for over a decade, they have reached only a fraction of those who could benefit, and innovations like long-acting injectable PrEP are only just beginning to roll out. We must ensure an affordable supply of innovations like long-acting PrEP, supporting community-led outreach to reach those who need it, and integrating HIV prevention into primary healthcare. And all this must be done while we ensure sustained access to antiretroviral treatment among people living with HIV to protect their health and to mitigate onward transmission.

4. Protect Human Rights
Public health fails when human rights are denied. To control HIV, we must ensure equity and inclusion for the communities most affected by the epidemic – including children, LGBTQ+ people, people who use drugs, sex workers, migrants, and adolescent girls and young women. These groups face legal and social barriers that fuel risk and block access to services. Programs must be designed with and for these communities, tackling stigma and removing punitive laws that drive people away from care. We call on all nations to adopt a human rights-centered approach and remove legal barriers, end discrimination, and partner with affected communities in delivering services. Protecting human rights is not just a moral imperative – it is essential to ending the HIV pandemic.

5. Reject the Politicization of Science
Science – not politics – must guide public health decisions. Leaders must safeguard the independence and integrity of health institutions, universities, and medical experts so that policies remain grounded in evidence. Experts estimate that the interruption and termination of foreign aid by the U.S. government in early 2025 could cause an additional 60,000 to 74,000 HIV-related deaths in Africa by 2030. Other countries are also cutting HIV funding due to shrinking aid budgets, worsening the global shortfall. We cannot allow short-sighted politics to upend decades of progress. Every country should enable its public health agencies and scientists to act on data without fear. It is also crucial for governments and multilateral organizations to combat misinformation with information rooted in scientific evidence. This is vital for rebuilding public trust in health guidance. Science, collaboration, and compassion have given us the tools to turn the tide against HIV – those same principles must continue to guide us. Keeping politics out of public health will save lives and sustain the credibility needed to end the HIV pandemic.