Dear Friend,

China has made notable progress addressing HIV/AIDS, and the Chinese government is to be commended for adopting a series of measures to combat the epidemic using scientifically validated strategies. A widespread epidemic has been averted, but much remains to be done and we must remain vigilant.

About 700,000 people are HIV positive in China, but less than 50,000 receive antiretroviral treatment. Driven by increases in high-risk behavior, a huge migrant workforce that circulates widely around the country, and persistent lack of knowledge about HIV prevention, infections are rising fast and starting to spread to the general population.

Since its founding in 2003, the China AIDS Initiative has launched advocacy, training, treatment and research programs to raise awareness, develop local expertise, enhance standards for care, and advance understanding about HIV in China. CAI’s interventions have helped to reduce the spread of what could otherwise become a devastating AIDS epidemic.

Coordinated by the Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center (ADARC), CAI mobilizes the capacity, resources, and expertise of its partner organizations, including:

Our featured program—Preventing Mother-To-Child Transmission of HIV—has reduced newborn infections from 33% to <2% in selected counties in Yunnan, and will hopefully expand throughout the province and beyond. Other CAI programs are addressing the drug-driven epidemic in Yunnan, and supporting AIDS orphans and vulnerable children.

We are also helping to train the next generation of AIDS scientists through partnerships with the University of Hong Kong and Tsinghua University, which with help from ADARC have established AIDS research centers in the region.

Please join us in helping China reverse the tide of HIV/AIDS by committing your financial support to the China AIDS Initiative.


David D. Ho, M.D.
Director and Chief Executive Officer
Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center
© 2010 The Aaron Diamond AIDS Research Center.