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The United Nations says the number new HIV cases has dropped nearly 20 percent in the past decade, but more than 33 million people are still infected by the virus.
In a report Tuesday, the U.N. AIDS agency found the rate of new HIV infections has stabilized or dropped sharply in at least 56 countries, including 34 in sub-Saharan Africa -- the region hardest hit by HIV-AIDS.
The report said Ethiopia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe -- four of the five African countries most affected by the epidemic -- have reduced rates of new HIV infections by more than 25 percent. The rate in the other country, Nigeria, has stabilized.
However, the U.N. report noted that nearly 70 percent of all new HIV infections in the world are still in sub-Saharan Africa.
It also said new infection rates have increased by 25 percent in some other countries, mostly in eastern Europe and Central Asia.
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