AIDS-free Caribbean remains goal despite funding challenges, says PANCAP 

The Caribbean continues its push toward an AIDS-free Caribbean even as global funding cuts threaten hard-won progress, the Pan Caribbean Partnership against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP) said on World AIDS Day.

“We will not retreat, we will not surrender the gains achieved, and we will continue to fight for an AIDS-free Caribbean,” said Dr Wendy Telgt Emanuelson, Director of the PANCAP Coordinating Unit (PCU). The statement came under the theme “Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response.”

Dr Emanuelson noted that the Caribbean faces a pivotal moment as financial shortfalls risk slowing progress, potentially affecting treatment, prevention programmes, and community support initiatives.

“Our resolve has not been shaken; it has been steeled,” she said, emphasising that the path to ending AIDS by 2030 remains challenging but achievable.

Highlighting regional achievements, Dr Emanuelson said some Caribbean countries have already eliminated mother-to-child HIV transmission. “This progress, hard-won by the dedication of governments, healthcare workers, civil society, and people living with HIV, is a foundation we will not allow to crumble but will continue to build on.”

She called on partners, healthcare workers, advocates, and communities to maintain solidarity and innovation. “We will not go back. We will not surrender the gains for which we have fought so hard. We will navigate this challenge with determination, innovate with purpose, and unite with a common vision. The journey may now be steeper, but our destination remains the same. Together, we will overcome this disruption, transform our response, and realise an AIDS-free Caribbean for generations to come.”