Professor Kaldor says HIV/AIDS education programs must reflect this problem.

Education programs

Professor Kaldor says HIV/AIDS education programs must reflect this problem.

"The last five or six years have seen that rates have steadily crept up in several parts of the country," he said.

"They're certainly not where they were 20 years ago, and so we're not trying to say that we're at that crisis situation we were at in the early 1980s, where the future seemed very uncertain with HIV.

"But there is a real need to - and I think there has been a recognition of that need, it's been responded to, I think, quite well, both in the government and community sector.

"But programs don't just do their job on their own. They do have to be kept under review and make sure they're relevant."

Don Baxter from the Australian Federation of AIDS Organisations says the fact HIV infection has not risen in NSW can be put down to well-funded education programs.

"[It] shows that education programs intensively put in place will at least stabilise, if not start reducing infection," he said.

But Mr Baxter also believes the exact opposite has happened in Victoria.

"There's been a lot of soul searching and analysis going on in the AIDS sector over the last 12 months because we've seen this coming," he said.

"Really ... two key factors are, looking at Victoria, there's bee a dis-investment in HIV/AIDS programs over the last decade, and so the prevention programs - particularly in the gay community, but elsewhere - are much less intense than they are in New South Wales.

"Also there's been less attention by the government in Victoria. It took its eyes off the call really in a way that New South Wales hasn't.

"So we think those two things contribute significantly to reductions in risk behaviour among gay men in New South Wales compared to the other states.

The Victorian Government rejects this, with a spokesman for the Victorian Health Minister Daniel Andrews saying the Victorian Government has spent around $30 million on HIV/AIDS education programs.

This includes a $6.5 million sexual health package in June aimed at helping to reduce rates of HIV and sexually transmitted infections

Rob Lake, from the group People Living with HIV/AIDS, says HIV/AIDS is a complicated issue and education programs are not simple endeavours.

He says all levels of government and the community need to be aware of this.

"How people respond to messages has changed over the last 10 years, because maybe 15 years ago when there were campaigns around there was a much higher visibility of HIV and people's awareness of it was much stronger, and that awareness has changed," he said.

"And for us keeping constant messages out there about condom use, about being aware of ... getting tested and knowing your HIV status - those are constant messages we need to reinforce."