Hands Up For HIV on World AIDS Day.

One of the biggest days of the year for the 30/30 Project is World AIDS Day. In the past, December 1 was a day to recognize those we had lost to AIDS, a day to call out their names and remember our loved ones. Today, it is still a day to remember our loved ones but it is also a day for advocacy and activism. Each year has a new theme like ending Stigma and Discrimination, Women and AIDS or Taking Action Against AIDS. This year the theme is HIV Prevention, which is an imperative part of the effort to end AIDS by the year 2030. Through prevention and treatment of HIV we can be the generation to end AIDS. This year, UNAIDS started the Hands Up for HIV Prevention campaign. We are putting our hands up with UNAIDS for HIV prevention. This World AIDS Day, the 30/30 Project is focusing on healthcare access, women's empowerment and maternal health, stigma, HIV testing, prevention and creating healthcare infrastructure. Many of the facilities that we build with our partners have an impact in HIV prevention. Since last January, 11,899 total HIV tests have been administered at our clinics. In the seven months since our Partners In Health clinic opened, over 2,600 people were tested for HIV, almost half of whom were tested for the very first time. Our Med25 clinic opened almost a year ago, and since then more than 5,000 people were tested for HIV and 175 patients started receiving antiretroviral (ARV) drugs. We are proud of the difference these clinics are making in the effort to end AIDS.