Sri Lanka recorded 487 new HIV cases in the first six months of 2026, 13.3 percent more than in the same period last year, according to the latest figures from the National STD/AIDS Control Programme.
The programme’s figures show 249 new cases in the first quarter of 2026 and 238 in the second quarter. In the first half of 2025 the country recorded 430 cases, with 230 in the first quarter and 200 in the second.
Men continued to account for most reported infections. The male-to-female ratio stood at 7:1 in the second quarter of 2026.
Among people aged 15 to 24, 55 cases were reported in the first half of this year. They included 48 males, six females and one transgender person.
Eight AIDS-related deaths were reported in the first two quarters of 2026, four in each quarter. The cumulative number of AIDS-related deaths reported in the country has reached 820, and another 111 deaths have been classified as non-AIDS-related. The cumulative adjusted number of deaths among all reported HIV cases up to 2025 stands at 1,708.
The report also shows that 117 cases have been linked to mother-to-child transmission, with no such cases reported in the fourth quarter of 2025. A total of 73 HIV-positive cases have been identified through the Immigration Health Unit, including nine in the second quarter of 2026.
Background
The National STD/AIDS Control Programme is the state body that monitors HIV and sexually transmitted infections in Sri Lanka and publishes periodic surveillance reports. Its quarterly figures count cases reported to the programme, which means they reflect people who have been tested and diagnosed.
The cumulative totals in the report cover all cases reported over the years, not only those of 2026. The figures for the second quarter of 2026 are the latest published in this report, and numbers for earlier periods can be revised as late reports reach the programme.
HIV is a virus that weakens the immune system. It is spread through unprotected sex, through contaminated blood or needles, and from mother to child during pregnancy, birth or breastfeeding. Treatment with antiretroviral medicines allows people with HIV to live long lives and greatly lowers the chance of passing the virus on.
What it means
The figures show that new diagnoses are rising, and that young people aged 15 to 24 make up a notable share of them. Health authorities generally advise anyone who may have been exposed to the virus to get tested, since early diagnosis allows treatment to begin sooner.
Testing and treatment are offered through the country’s sexually transmitted disease clinics. Sri Lankans planning to work or migrate abroad may also be tested as part of the health checks required by some destination countries, and the report notes that 73 cases have been identified through the Immigration Health Unit.
