South Africa: Mashatile Rallies South Africans to Close the Aids Treatment Gap

1 December 2025
Scrolla (Johannesburg)
By Everson Luhanga
  • Paul Mashatile leads the World AIDS Day event in Ga-Masemola as the government pushes to reach millions still outside HIV treatment programmes.
  • South Africa has eight million people with HIV but over two million are not on treatment despite free care at public health facilities.

Families from Ga-Masemola and nearby villages gathered at the stadium on Monday as Deputy President Paul Mashatile led South Africa's main World AIDS Day event.

Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi and other leaders joined him to reflect on progress and the difficult work still ahead.

South Africa has more people living with HIV than any other country, with more than eight million affected.

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About six million are on treatment and more than 3.5 million are virally suppressed.

But over two million people are still not receiving the medication that keeps them healthy.

Health spokesperson Foster Mohale says the message this year is simple and urgent.

"We cannot slow down," he said.

He says millions still need support to start and stay on treatment, and to protect themselves from new infections.

The government is strengthening programmes to reach those left behind.

One is the 1.1 Million - Close the Gap campaign, which aims to find and treat more than one million people who know their HIV status but are not yet on medication.

Another is the Six Multi-Month Dispensing system, which allows stable patients to collect a six-month supply of medication.

Mohale says this helps people stay in care by cutting clinic visits to two a year.

All services remain free at public health facilities.

This year's theme is 'Overcoming disruption, transforming the AIDS response'.

The South African National AIDS Council is trying to fill a funding hole after a major cut from the United States President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief.

SANAC chief executive Thembisile Xulu says they are speaking to other donors, including the Clinton Health Access Initiative and Elma Philanthropies.

She says no one can fully replace the lost funding, but they are working to keep programmes running.

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