Armenia recognized by WHO Global Commission for eliminating  mother-to-child HIV transmission

ArmInfo. An extraordinary meeting of the commission coordinating measures to combat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, and malaria was held, as reported by  the Armenian Ministry of Health.

"Although noncommunicable diseases remain the leading cause of death,  we have no right to relax our vigilance, even slightly, in our  efforts to prevent, promptly detect, and treat infectious diseases.  COVID-19 and the post-COVID period, in particular, have proven this,"  RA Minister of Health Anahit Avanesyan stated at the meeting.

The meeting presented the current status of HIV/AIDS and tuberculosis  in Armenia, the measures being carried out to prevent, detect, and  treat them, as well as the latest achievements recorded through  Global Fund grant programs. Detection rates for some infectious  diseases have increased significantly. Experts note an important  point: this indicator often indicates not an increase in the  prevalence of the disease, but rather an improvement in the  effectiveness of its detection. 

In recent years, the availability of HIV testing has significantly  expanded in the country, particularly for target populations most  vulnerable to HIV infection. Rapid HIV/AIDS tests are available in  more than 90 primary healthcare facilities, and the Ministry of  Health's mobile clinics regularly visit rural outpatient clinics  where they are unavailable. Thus, in 2025, approximately 270,000  tests were performed. While previously a citizen had to wait 3-4 days  for test results, now results are available on the same day.   Nevertheless, a stabilization of HIV incidence rates is expected in  Armenia in 2024-2025, and a decrease in new cases in 2025. Speaking  about achievements, it was noted that in 2015, Armenia was recognized  by the WHO Global Commission as having eliminated mother-to-child  transmission of HIV, a status it maintains to this day. At the end of  the meeting, the Working Group's action plan for the transition  period for 2026- 2027 was approved.