Barbados wins WHO certification for ending mother-to-baby HIV transmission
WHO certified on 30 October that Barbados has eliminated mother-to-child transmission of HIV as a public health problem: from 2022 to 2024, no baby on the island was infected this way. That makes 26 countries and territories recognised, 15 of them in the Americas. The catch: keeping the status means sustained investment and wider HIV and syphilis testing in pregnancy.
In Barbados, a pregnant woman living with HIV no longer has to pass it on to her baby. From 2022 to 2024 the island recorded not a single infection from mother to child, and the World Health Organization has now made it official: on 30 October it announced that the country has eliminated this route of transmission as a public health problem.
“I congratulate Barbados on protecting a generation of children from HIV,” said WHO Director-General Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus. He described it as universal health coverage in practice: free services for every pregnant woman, regardless of nationality, and care that respects her rights and privacy.
Three years of near-universal care in pregnancy
The certification follows an independent assessment. Over those three years, 98% of pregnant women received antenatal care, 98% were tested for HIV and 98% of those living with the virus received antiretroviral treatment, according to PAHO.
Health care on the island is universal and most of it runs through one place: Queen Elizabeth Hospital handles about 93% of births. Testing is voluntary and confidential, and babies exposed to the virus get early testing and follow-up. The WHO assessment found no evidence of coercive practices involving women living with HIV.
“It allows us to be able to see our children living their full, best lives,” said Health Minister Lisa Cummins.
The Americas lead the way
Barbados joins 26 countries and territories recognised by WHO for eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV, syphilis or hepatitis B, or for being on track to do so. Fifteen are in the Americas. The most recent in the region were the Bahamas and Turks and Caicos (2026), Brazil (2025), and Jamaica and Saint Vincent and the Grenadines (2024).
What it takes to keep it
The status is not permanent. To hold on to it, PAHO says Barbados will need continued investment, updated guidelines, stronger health information systems, expanded joint HIV and syphilis testing and better follow-up for mothers and children.
