Saharan Africa had 227 million extremely poor in 1990, but the number increased to 313 million in 2001. The report said an estimated 1 billion people - one in five in developing countries - still live in extreme poverty. The world population stood at 6.5 billion in 2005. Achieving universal primary education has scored some success with eight regions approaching that universal goal, the report said. They include Latin America and the Caribbean with 96 per cent in 2001, followed by Eastern Asia with 95 per cent, Northern Africa with 92 percent and South-eastern Asia with 91 percent. Sub-Saharan Africa achieved 62 per cent in 2001. One elusive millennium goal has been the fight to halt the spread of HIV/AIDS by 2015. The U.N. reported the epidemic is spreading, with women and girls becoming the primary victims. By the end of 2004, an estimated 39 million people were living with HIV, with no country in the world escaping the disease. In 2004, an estimated 4.9 million people became infected with HIV and 3.1 million died. HIV is spreading fastest in European countries of the Commonwealth of Independent Countries and in parts of Asia. -- SP 2353 Local Time 2053 GMT
