UN says AIDS cases rose by 25% in 1995

（Originally in English）

　《Associated Press－－Geneva》The number of people suffering from AIDS soared by 25% in 1995 and now totals 1.3 million, according to are- port by the United Nations.

　In a survey released Thursday on figures and trends of the disease, the United Nations said 21 million adults across the world are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS.

　Women make up about 42% of the reported cases and the percentage is rising, the organization said.

　The agency did not release figures on the number of children infected, and experts disagree on how many there are.

　Data indicate that most adults were infected with HIV between the ages of 15 and 24 and experience symptoms by the age of 35. More than 90% of those who die from AIDS-related disease are under 49.

　More than 90% of those infected with HIV or AIDS live in developing countries. Industrialized countries in North America, Europe and the Pacific nations together accounted for 1.2 million cases of HIV.

　The worst hit regions in the world are sub-Saharan Africa and the Caribbean, the agency said.

　In Botswana 18% of adults have HIV. In Zambia and Zimbabwe l7% are infected. More than half are women.

　But the agency said there were hopeful signs that the disease was stabilizing in some parts of the world.

　In the United States, the number of people infected with HIV last year, has declined considerably over the last several years. In the African countries of Burundi and Zaire, infection rates were stable. In Thailand the number of cases discovered among military recruits had dropped.

　“These changes appear to be linked in part to behavioral changes such as increased condom use, fewer sex partners and later initiation into sexual activity,” the report said.