Factbox: AIDS virus infects 33 million globally

(Reuters) - A new report from the U.S. Institute of Medicine recommends that governments and non-profit groups fighting AIDS in Africa concentrate more on preventing new cases than on treating patients.

The panel of international experts projects that 70 million Africans will be infected with the human immunodeficiency virus by 2050 unless something changes.

Here are some facts on HIV and AIDS from the United Nations AIDS agency UNAIDS:

* An estimated 33.3 million people worldwide had HIV in 2009, up from 26.2 million in 1999.

* 1.8 million people died directly and indirectly from AIDS in 2009, a quarter of them from tuberculosis.

* Since the AIDS pandemic started in the early 1980s, more than 60 million people have been infected with HIV and nearly 30 million have died.

* In 2009, 2.6 million people globally became newly infected with HIV, down from 3.1 million in 1999.

* Of these, 1.8 million new infections were in sub-Saharan Africa, bringing to 22.5 million the number of Africans who have HIV.

* Around 370,000 children were born with HIV in 2009, bringing to 2.5 million the total number of children under 15 living with HIV.

* 1.3 million people died from AIDS-related disease in Sub-Saharan Africa in 2009.

(Source: UNAIDS, U.S. Institute of Medicine)

(Reporting by Maggie Fox in Washington; Editing by Paul Simao)