Joining the UNAIDS Fast Track City Network - by Councillor Chris Moise, seconded by Mayor Olivia Chow

It focuses on achieving the 95-95-95 targets by 2030, which means ensuring that 95 percent of people living with HIV are aware of their status, 95 percent of those diagnosed are on antiretroviral treatment, and 95 percent of those on treatment have a suppressed viral load. Globally, there are over 600 municipalities that have joined the UNAIDS Fast Track City network, including New York City, Chicago, Houston, London, and Paris. The key objectives of the Fast Track Cities initiative are: - ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030; - addressing the causes of risk, vulnerability, and HIV transmission; - forging strategic partnerships; and - addressing significant disparities in access to services, social justice, and economic opportunities[1]. The Fast Track City initiative would bring additional resources to the city, including guidance on how to maximize return on the current HIV-related budget, technical assistance in developing measurement and monitoring tools and indicators, best practices from other cities, and assistance with fundraising from private sector supporters. There is no cost to the City of Toronto to formally declaring itself a member of the UNAIDS Fast Track City network. Toronto has seen a sustained increasing trend in reported HIV infections since 2016 with the exception being during the COVID-19 pandemic, where decreased sexually transmitted infection testing was observed. Toronto Public Health's 2023 Population Health Profile revealed a nearly 40 percent decline in routine STI testing from 2019 to 2021, potentially contributing to ongoing undetected HIV transmission. Toronto Public Health has been part of a community initiative called Toronto-to -Zero that has put forward an evidence-informed approach to ending the HIV epidemic, based on five key areas: prevention, identification, access to care, social determinants of Health lens, and ending HIV stigma. This work is done in collaboration with over 20 local organizations dedicated to addressing the AIDS epidemic. In addition, the UNAIDS Fast Track City network aligns with existing strategies, including Ontario's HIV/AIDS Strategy to 2026: Focusing our Efforts - Changing the Course of the HIV Prevention, Engagement and Care Cascade, which has been supported by the Ontario Ministry of Health. Toronto Public Health has supported the preparation of this Motion. This Motion is urgent because World AIDS Day is on December 1 and City Council does not meet again until December 13, 2023. [1] UNAIDS. (2022). Joint UNAIDS-IAPAC Fast-Track Cities Project: Frequently Asked Questions. https://www.unaids.org/sites/default/files/media_asset/FTC_FAQ_en.pdf