An estimated 120,000 children and adolescents aged 0-19 were living with HIV in India in 2017, the highest number in South Asia, according a report by UNICEF which warned that around 80 adolescents will be dying of AIDS every day globally by 2030 if progress in preventing transmission is not accelerated.

According to the UNICEF report ‘Children, HIV and AIDS: The World in 2030’ released on Thursday, an estimated 120,000 children and adolescents aged 0-19 were living with HIV in 2017. This was followed by Pakistan (5,800), Nepal (1,600) and Bangladesh (less than 1,000).

In 2017, the estimated number of children under 5 years old newly diagnosed with HIV was 43 per cent lower than the comparable estimate in 2010 a decline greater than the 35 per cent recorded globally.

The estimated share of those aged 0-14 living with HIV who had been initiated on lifesaving antiretroviral therapy (ART) was 73 per cent in 2017, an increase of nearly 50 percentage points from 2010.

The report noted that South Asia has made substantial progress in reducing HIV risks and vulnerability among children, adolescents, pregnant women and mothers. However, it warned that by 2030, around 80 adolescents will be dying of AIDS every day if “we don’t accelerate progress in preventing transmission.”

“The report makes it clear, without the shadow of a doubt, that the world is off track when it comes to ending AIDS among children and adolescents by 2030,” said UNICEF chief Henrietta Fore.