ISLAMABAD: Afghanistan reported 280 new HIV cases through seven antiretroviral therapy (ART) centres in 2026, but only 1,996, or nearly 54 percent, of the 3,703 registered patients were receiving treatment, official programme data showed.
The figures point to a substantial treatment gap in the conflict-affected country, where testing, linkage to care and uninterrupted access to medicines remain critical challenges for the HIV response.
The data covered ART centres in Kabul, Balkh, Nangarhar, Herat, Khost, Kandahar and Kunduz. However, the reporting cut-off for the 2026 figures was not mentioned, making a direct comparison with the full-year 2025 data difficult.
Kabul reported the highest number of new cases, with 129 patients registered in 2026, followed by Balkh and Herat with 35 cases each, Nangarhar with 29, Khost with 20, Kandahar with 19 and Kunduz with 13.
Kabul also accounted for the largest number of people living with HIV in the reporting network, with 1,894 registered patients, of whom 893 were receiving ART.
Nangarhar reported 383 registered patients and 283 on treatment, while Herat had 467 patients, including 193 receiving medicines.
Balkh had 336 registered patients, with 209 on treatment, while Khost reported 247 patients and 207 receiving ART. Kandahar had 215 registered patients and 115 on treatment, while Kunduz reported 161 patients, including 96 receiving medicines.
The data showed that 1,743 of the 3,410 patients registered through programme-supported facilities were receiving ART in 2025, a treatment coverage of about 51 percent. The latest 2026 data showed an increase in the number on treatment to 1,996, but 1,707 registered patients were still not listed as receiving ART.
Afghanistan had recorded a total of 4,186 HIV cases by the end of December 2025, including 3,410 patients registered at programme-supported health facilities and another 776 reported by other health facilities.
With an estimated population of 43.84 million, Afghanistan has a comparatively low HIV prevalence in the general population. However, health services have been affected by displacement, financial constraints, stigma and a fragile healthcare system that remains heavily reliant on international support.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has identified the sharing of needles and other injecting equipment among people who inject drugs as the principal documented route of HIV transmission in Afghanistan.
Unprotected sexual contact, unsafe exposure to infected blood, including through transfusions or medical injections, and mother-to-child transmission are other recognised routes.
Health experts say the response requires confidential testing, safe blood screening, infection-control measures in healthcare facilities, sterile injecting equipment, prevention of mother-to-child transmission and timely enrolment of diagnosed people on ART.
Antiretroviral treatment suppresses the virus, protects the immune system and enables people living with HIV to lead healthy lives. Consistent treatment can also prevent sexual transmission when viral suppression is achieved, experts say.
