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LGBT communities and other groups most affected by HIV and AIDS worldwide take the spotlight as the 21st International AIDS Conference launches in Durban, South Africa.

While researchers and government and public health officials acknowledged the progress made since the last time the conference was held in Durban 16 years ago, particularly around access to effective HIV treatment, many have expressed frustration that in some respects things are getting worse.

鈥淭he human rights of people most at risk… are consistently violated throughout the world,鈥� said Chris Beyrer, President of the International AIDS Society.

Beyrer said interventions like PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis for HIV) were promising, but that they weren鈥檛 accessible for the vast majority of people who need them the most.

He was also one of a number of senior officials who acknowledged the ongoing human rights abuses faced by many of the groups most affected by HIV and AIDS worldwide.

United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon said addressing these problems was fundamental to making progress on the global HIV epidemic.

鈥淲e must protect the rights of people living with HIV, gay and bisexual men, transgender people, sex workers, people who inject drugs, and prisoners,鈥� said Ban.

鈥淲e must close the gaps that prevent people from accessing services and living with dignity.鈥�

A decline in funding from the world鈥檚 wealthier countries was also cited as a major challenge to progress.

In contrast to the triumphalism of much of the conference opening, UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidib茅 was angry as he called on governments to increase their financial commitment to ending AIDS.

鈥淚鈥檓 seeing for the first time a decline in financing from donor countries… if we continue with this trend the only thing I鈥檓 going to say is that we won鈥檛 be able to end AIDS by 2030,鈥� he said.

鈥淲e need to be able to call on donors to make sure they understand it鈥檚 not time to stop.鈥�

Sidib茅 warned that without more funding now, the epidemic would become much more expensive to stop down the line.

One of the most discussed pieces of research at the conference has been the results of the PARTNER study, which looks at how effective treatment for HIV can prevent transmission to a negative partner, even during condomless sex.

The study followed almost one thousand couples, gay and straight, where one partner is HIV-negative and the other is HIV-positive with an 鈥榰ndetectable viral load鈥�, meaning effective antiretroviral treatment has suppressed the virus to undetectable levels in the blood.

Across 58,000 acts of condomless sex in the study, not a single HIV transmission was recorded. This result is a huge success for 鈥榯reatment as prevention鈥� as a strategy for reducing HIV transmissions, and points to the importance of testing and treatment.

The conference runs in Durban from July 18-22, with more than 18,000 scientists, activists, health workers and government officials presenting research and discussing issues relating to HIV and AIDS epidemics worldwide.

The Victorian AIDS Council (VAC) is supporting 17c起草社区’s coverage of the 2016 International Aids Conference in Durban by providing travel and accommodation for a VAC staff member to attend as a journalist. 17c起草社区 retains editorial control over the content published as part of this agreement.