HIV/AIDS in Guyana

Approximately 1.6% of adults in Guyana are living with HIV/AIDS, and Guyana has had HIV prevalence rates that are relatively high for the Caribbean.^[1][2] Globally, Guyana had the 20th highest HIV prevalence rate compared to other countries in 2023.^[3] As of 2024, it is estimated that 11,000 adults and children are living with HIV in Guyana.^[1] The country has experienced both a percentage increase in new HIV infections and AIDS related deaths since 2010.^[1]

Guyana is pursuing 95-95-95 targets, for 95% of all people living with HIV to know their status, for 95% of these people to be on treatment, and for 95% of people on treatment to be virally suppressed.^[4] At the end of 2023, Guyana achieved 94%-72%-87% of these three targets.^[4][5]

Since the first case of AIDS was reported in Guyana in 1987, there was a steady increase in its prevalence through 2007.^[6] Though Guyana saw a slight decrease in HIV infections from 2006 to 2011, new infections increased by 19% from 2010 to 2024.^[7][8]

Previously, AIDS was the leading cause of death among adults aged 25-44, and in 2002, HIV/AIDS was the second leading cause of death of Guyanese adults, primarily aged 20-30.^[6] In the early 2000s, Guyana was one of five Latin American countries where the HIV epidemic had become generalized.^[9] In 2013, Guyana had the third-highest prevalence of HIV in Caribbean countries.^[2]

The number of reported HIV/AIDS cases in Guyana was reduced to 1% of the total population in 2009–2010, complying with the UNAIDS target of 1.3%. A national report on HIV/AIDS for 2009 reveals that over 105,000 HIV/AIDS tests were conducted in Guyana.^[10]

HIV prevalence has remained persistent among homosexual men, men who have sex with men (MSM), transgender people, and sex workers.^[11] Young women, and young people generally, are also particularly impacted by HIV, making education, testing, and early diagnosis for treatment of ongoing importance.^[11]

In its 2019 HIV Prevention Guidelines for Guyana, USAID identified miners and loggers as priority populations.^[12] Loggers in Guyana are a significant segment of the migrant worker population. With forests generally found in isolated areas, there can be a lack of regular access to both condoms and correct knowledge of how HIV is transmitted, which increases vulnerability to infection.^[13]

There has been international engagement to mitigate HIV/AIDS in Guyana. Guyana was one of 15 focus countries of the United States President's Emergency Plan For AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) announced in 2003 by President George W. Bush.^[6][14] The focus countries collectively represented roughly 50% of HIV infections worldwide, and the Emergency Plan was the largest international health initiative by one nation to address a single disease.^[6]

Additional entities engaged include USAID, UNAIDS, and the World Bank.^{[15][16][17][18][19]}

As of 2021, Guyana had a multi-year, costed national strategy to respond to HIV, along with continued PEPFAR funding support.^[20][21]

In parallel, health agencies and organizations have reduced funding to Guyana as it is no longer listed as a High Prevalence Country for HIV/AIDS.^[22]