As a staff member of the Global Programme on AIDS (GPA) of the World Health Organization (WHO) in Geneva from 1987-1992, my responsibilities included developing methods for the surveillance and estimation/ projection of HIV/AIDS and briefing all new HQ and field staff on the current status of the pandemic. I found that most of the staff who were joining GPA in the late 1980s did not have a good understanding (as it was understood at that time) of HIV/AIDS numbers and the basic epidemiology of HIV. I have found that this general situation continues today for many if not most AIDS workers, AIDS advocates and AIDS activists.

This presentation was prepared to provide persons who are interested in or working in HIV/AIDS programs with an objective review of the current estimates of HIV/AIDS and with my understanding of the basic epidemiology and the transmission dynamics of HIV infections. Most of the materials in this lecture were prepared for my book – The AIDS Pandemic: the collision of epidemiology with political correctness (Radcliffe-Oxford) that was published in early 2007.

See www.theaidspandemic.com for details and reviews of this book.