Two new cases of AIDS and 56 cases of HIV were reported until October in Malta, the government said to mark World AIDS Day today.
In 2015, there were 61 new cases of HIV and one case of HIV.
In Malta, over a 10-year period starting in 2004, a total of 300 new cases of HIV were identified.
In a statement, the government said leading experts on HIV prevention and control from across the EU will be meeting in Malta on January 30-31 for a technical meeting.
The meeting is one of the initiatives being taken by the Maltese presidency of the European Union.
The experts will discuss how Europe can improve its response to HIV and achieve the targets outlined in the Sustainable Development Goals, that is, the actions agreed upon at the UN high-level meeting on HIV/AIDS, and those adopted in the Global Health Sector Strategy at the World Health Assembly.
The experts will discuss practical evidence-based interventions and strategies, share achievements and examples of good practices, and identify solutions to common challenges.
The priority areas on which EU states agree that they should scale up their efforts will be discussed, and the proceedings of the meeting will be translated into a technical Malta declaration.
Since the beginning of the epidemic, more than 70 million people have been infected with the HIV virus, and about 35 million have died of HIV.
Globally, 36.7 million [34.0–39.8 million] people were living with HIV at the end of 2015. Almost 30,000 newly diagnosed HIV infections were reported by the 31 European Union and European Economic Area (EU/EEA) countries in 2015.
Although there have been impressive results in reducing the number of AIDS diagnoses during the last decade, the burden of HIV infection remains unacceptably high in Europe.
Prevention efforts focus on the promotion of safer sexual health practices and training of professionals to support people in prevention, including encouraging youths to act as peer leaders. Testing is encouraged, including at community and GU clinics. People affected with HIV are offered free treatment by specialists at the HIV clinic.
World Aids Day is marked globally on December 1. This worldwide event raises awareness about HIV, promotes prevention measures, encourages testing, and supports people living with HIV.