Liberia enters another World AIDS Day with a sobering reminder of how fragile the country's public-health gains remain. New UNAIDS Spectrum 2025 estimates place the number of people living with HIV at 36,000, up from 34,000 last year. It is not a dramatic spike, but it is a meaningful one--evidence that while we celebrate progress in testing, treatment, and viral suppression, the national response is still dangerously exposed to structural weakness, donor dependency, and persistent gender-based disparities.
The National AIDS Commission (NAC), led by Dr. Cecelia Nuta, was right to characterize the latest numbers as both progress and concern. Liberia has accomplished what many struggling health systems would envy: 31,000 Liberians now know their status, nearly every identified case is enrolled in treatment, and 95 percent of those on medication are virally suppressed, significantly reducing onward transmission. This is a huge win for public health.
But the rise in overall cases, and, more importantly, the increase in new infections, tells a different story. Behind the encouraging numbers lies a harsh truth: Liberia's HIV response is still too fragile, too donor-dependent, and too unequal to withstand future shocks.
The recent temporary halt in U.S. foreign assistance exposed what experts have warned for years: Liberia's HIV prevention and treatment programs collapse when external partners pull back even slightly. Outreach stalled. Testing dropped. Community support weakened. The country's progress, painstakingly built over the years, was put at risk overnight.
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A nation cannot end AIDS as a public-health threat by 2030 while depending almost entirely on the goodwill of foreign governments. Donor support is a lifeline, yes. But it must never be the spine.
It is time for Liberia to confront a reality that too many leaders skirt around: a national epidemic cannot be run on borrowed money. The NAC's call for a major boost in domestic funding during the 2025/2026 fiscal year is not a request--it is a necessity. Without strong national financing, Liberia will forever live at the mercy of donor politics.
Another warning in the NAC data is the disproportionate impact on women. Year after year, the numbers repeat the same pattern: women carry the heaviest burden of HIV infection in Liberia. This is a reflection of deeper inequalities, including sexual violence, economic dependence, limited negotiating power in relationships, and gaps in reproductive-health access.
Ending AIDS will be impossible without addressing the social and economic conditions that make women more vulnerable. That means real investments in sexual- and reproductive-health services, adolescent-focused interventions, and community systems that protect girls and young women from exploitation.
Liberia is not failing. In many ways, it is advancing. The upcoming nationwide media campaign, stretching from Montserrado to Lofa, reflects a renewed commitment to awareness and education. Health workers, the Ministry of Health, and the National AIDS & STI Control Program deserve credit for keeping treatment available even during funding uncertainty.
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And President Joseph Nyuma Boakai's consistent support has provided much-needed stability amid financial turbulence.
But the message ahead of World AIDS Day must be sharper, more urgent, and impossible to ignore for policymakers.
We can either continue relying on donors to bankroll the defense of our people's lives, or we can finally build a domestically funded system capable of surviving political shocks.
We can continue accepting that women remain disproportionately infected, or we can address the inequalities fueling that trend.
We can celebrate viral suppression rates and testing numbers, or we can confront the rising infections that threaten to erase those gains.
If Liberia is serious about ending AIDS as a public-health threat by 2030, then the government must treat HIV financing as a national priority--not a line item to be padded by partners. The country cannot keep outsourcing the responsibility for its own people.
The NAC's message is clear: progress is real, but it is fragile.
And fragile progress is no progress at all.
As the nation prepares for the December 1 parade, speeches, test drives, and awareness activities, Liberian leaders must look beyond the banners, slogans, and commemorative ceremonies.
The true measure of commitment will not be seen on World AIDS Day.
It will be seen in the FY2025/2026 budget.
Liberia knows what must be done. The question now is whether we have the courage to do it.
