In 2008, there were 33.4 million people living with HIV. (Tim Wimborne/Reuters)

This year's international conference of scientists, policy makers, health groups and activists working in the field of HIV and AIDS aims to keep the issue at the forefront of the public consciousness by focusing on the link between the disease and human rights.

Rights Here, Right Now is the title of the 18th annual AIDS conference, which begins Sunday in Vienna and runs until July 23. UNAIDS, The World Health Organization and the Global Fund are among the participants.

"It is now absolutely clear that stigma, discrimination and rights violations — whether focused directly on people with HIV or on particular groups, such as women and girls, men who have sex with men, people who use drugs or trade/sell sex or young people — as well as punitive or misguided policies towards key populations most affected by HIV are major obstacles to an effective response to HIV," states the conference agenda.

Although the goal past conference participants had set of achieving universal access to life-saving HIV drugs by 2010 is far from being met, organizers are determined to keep AIDS on the global agenda.

"With a global economic crisis threatening to undermine public investments, the conference will help keep HIV on the front burner and is a chance to demonstrate the importance of continued HIV investments to broader health and development goals," the conference agenda says.

AIDS-related deaths decline: UNAIDS

Universal HIV drug access might not be a reality, but significant progress has been made in treating the disease, the conference co-ordinating committee says, with fewer AIDS-related deaths today than in the past.

'With a global economic crisis threatening to undermine public investments, the conference will help keep HIV on the front burner and is a chance to demonstrate the importance of continued HIV investments to broader health and development goals.'—Conference agenda

In 2008, there were 100,000 fewer AIDS-related deaths than in 2007, according to UNAIDS.

Overall in 2008, there were 33.4 million people living with HIV, 2.7 million new infections and two million AIDS-related deaths.

In 2007, there were 33.2 million people living with the disease, 2.5 million new infections and 2.1 million people died of AIDS-related illnesses.

Conference organizers say more work needs to be done in developing strategies to prevent the disease given the fact that less progress has been made in that area.

According to UNAIDS, for every two people starting treatment, a further five become infected with the virus.

According to organizers, 25,000 people will be participating in this year's conference.