Three million people died from AIDS-related diseases in 2003, the highest number in any year since the start of the epidemic. Despite treatment advances that in western countries have dramatically reduced the death toll, in the developing world the disease’s impact is equivalent to a fully loaded Boeing 747 jet crashing every 90 minutes.

In an interview with the BBC, UN secretary-general Kofi Annan criticised the lack of response to the epidemic compared with the war on terrorism. “AIDS is the real weapon of mass destruction, and what are we doing about that?” he said.

“Preventing and treating AIDS may be the toughest health assignment the world has ever faced, but it is also the most urgent,” said Dr Lee Jong-wook, director-general of the World Health Organisation (WHO).

The WHO used World AIDS Day to announce details of its ambitious ‘three by five” treatment plan, which aims to provide antiretroviral treatment to three million people in poor countries by 2005. The $5.5 billion plan will use four simplified antiviral combinations in a ‘one size fits most’ approach, and will train 100,000 health care workers and refocus 10,000 clinics in developing countries to deal with HIV/AIDS.

Globally, six million people are estimated to be in ‘urgent’ need of HIV antivirals, but only 400,000 are currently receiving them.