From December 4 to 7, in the wake of the International Day against HIV/AIDS, the AIDES association holds its traditional charity flea market, in Pantin near Paris (then in Marseille the following weekend). An opportunity to take stock of the situation with its president, Camille Spire, who warns about the decline in funding and the fragilization of the civil society fabric.
- AIDES a fêté ses 40 ans en 2024. Comment sa mission a-t-elle évolué ?
Unfortunately, HIV is still here. We are not done with the epidemic, and we will not be finished by 2030, contrary to the trajectory that was anticipated before Donald Trump took office as President of the United States and the decline in funding for the fight against HIV. And the people living with HIV (PLWH) are still there, and they need access to treatments and a decent quality of life. Their voices must always be heard.
- Sur quels fronts AIDES œuvre-t-elle aujourd’hui ?
AIDES remains a field-based association. It operates in metropolitan France and in the Caribbean as close as possible to the people most exposed, whether among men who have sex with men, people who use psychoactive substances, people born in sub-Saharan Africa or the Caribbean, transgender people in Latin America, or sex workers. We also assist in access to care, the defense of rights, quality of life, or through discussion groups or health weekends.
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- Un des piliers de la philosophie de l’association est d’écouter les personnes concernées. Que nous enseignent les récents états généraux des personnes vivant avec le VIH ?
There is a very important focus on the discrimination suffered by people living with HIV. A real lack of knowledge persists about what HIV is, including among health professionals, which perpetuates rejection and discrimination. The general assemblies also highlighted a number of difficulties related to aging with HIV (isolation, precarity, comorbidities). Today, 88,460 people living with HIV in France are over 50, which is a little more than half. Our recommendations notably call for ensuring their care without territorial disparities, through structures whose staff have been trained. The full list of recommendations is available online.
- En amont de la reconstitution du Fonds mondial, AIDES a lancé une campagne dont le slogan est : “On ne s’engage pas à moitié”. Les pouvoirs publics ont encore besoin qu’on les interpelle sur le sujet ?
Created in 2002, this Fund has already helped save nearly 70 million lives and place 26.5 million people on antiretroviral treatment. It operates as an international partnership that collects funds and then redistributes them to countries to support local programs. If AIDES raises the alarm, it is because the risks are real: at this stage, it is still unknown to what extent the United States and France, the first and second historic donors, will contribute to the next replenishment. Our campaign therefore aims to maintain political pressure to guarantee funding commensurate with the global health challenges.
- Le désinvestissement des États dans la lutte contre le VIH fait écho au plan social qu’AIDES traverse actuellement…
Like many other associations, we have indeed suffered a decline in public subsidies. Added to this is the revaluation of the Ségur premium, a government decision that is otherwise very positive, intended to increase the salaries of medical-social professionals and, more broadly, of associations in the sector. But this has had a major impact on all health associations, which must fund this increase themselves. So, despite our efforts, we could not avoid this employment safeguard plan.
- PrEP, TaSP, TPE, dépistage facilité… Les progrès scientifiques ont-ils détourné le regard de la nécessité du travail associatif ?
Undoubtedly. While these advances are obviously crucial, the civil society network remains just as essential. I believe we do not realize how present associations are on the ground. It remains crucial to continue fighting inequalities and discriminations that hinder screening and access to care, and, for example, to protect the Aide médicale de l’État (AME), regularly targeted, while it constitutes an indispensable public health tool. We must also be able to accompany people who are aging with HIV now.
- Cette année, pour la Journée internationale de lutte contre le VIH/sida, la campagne de AIDES s’est concentrée sur le message “I =I” : pourquoi est-ce important ?
Because while prevention is discussed a lot, we must also talk about the people living with HIV, and the link between the two. “I = I” means that when a person living with HIV adheres properly to antiretroviral therapy and reaches an “undetectable” viral load – that is, the virus is present at a level too low to be detected by standard tests – they can no longer transmit HIV to their sexual partners. From there, it changes people’s lives, changes their sexuality, their relationships with others. It is also a lever to fight discrimination: if this principle is known to the general public, the fear surrounding HIV should disappear. Unfortunately, this equation, which is based on science, is still not widely known.
- Comment AIDES travaille-t-elle à faire passer ce message ?
There are, of course, prevention campaigns, but also on-the-ground actions that allow information to be shared and to create communication chains so the message continues to spread. This remains difficult; this virus has generated so much fear! We strive to disseminate our messages through all possible channels (social networks, emails, letters, posters, flyers) to reach as many people as possible, but we are, of course, limited by the cost this represents, and any relay is welcome!
- Comment aider AIDES ?
40% of our budget relies on public generosity: every donation is therefore essential for us! It is also possible to volunteer within the association, participate in mobilizations, sign appeals, petitions, or share the correct information.
>> To support AIDES, you can make a donation (tax-deductible up to 66% of the amount donated; to benefit from this starting in 2026, donate before December 31!)
