Former President Barack Obama has some good news at a time when the world seems bleak and cynical to many people browsing social media and the news.

In a taped speech aired on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” Mr Obama encouraged people to participate in World AIDS Day, and said that the fight against the deadly virus has seen some remarkable advances because of the tenacity and drive of people who want to make the world a better place.

“When it comes to the fight against HIV/AIDS, there's some genuinely good news to share,” Mr Obama said. “For the first time in history, more than half of all people living with the virus are on life-saving medication.”

The filmed segment was a call to arms for people to come together to fight against the virus. The world seems like a cynical place, Mr Obama acknowledged, but encouraged people to remember that advances in AIDs therapy — the number of deaths has been cut in half from the peak of the epidemic, and 20 million people are now on life-saving drugs — were the product of hard work.

“It sounds like a miracle, but it's not the result of mysterious forces or chance. It happened because countless people working for years chose to make this process,” Mr Obama said.

Some of those (like Kimmel, or Bono, who is a prominent anti-AIDS activist) wield their influence, or their money, to help the cause. But others have been effective without that type of sway.

World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures Show all 9 1 /9 World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures Indian NGO volunteers light candles in the shape of a ribbon during an awareness rally on the eve of World Aids Day in Agartala, the capital of northeastern state of Tripura, India World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures Government health workers wear masks as they display a streamer during a World Aids Day celebration in Manila, Philippines REUTERS/Erik De Castro World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures Filipino women wear colourful costumes during a World Aids Day celebration in Manila REUTERS/Erik De Castro World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures Indonesian students hold a rally to increase awareness of HIV and AIDS at a university in Surabaya JUNI KRISWANTOJUNI KRISWANTO/AFP/Getty Images World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures An Indian college student poses alongside placards during an event at a local hospital to raise awareness about AIDS on the occasion of World Aids Day AFP PHOTO STR/AFP/Getty Images World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures People Living with HIV AIDS (PLHA) lie on the street during a protest demanding the revival of focus on India's AIDS programme which has been on the decline in the past few years, in New Delhi AFP PHOTO / SAJJAD HUSSAINSAJJAD HUSSAIN/AFP/Getty Images World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures A red ribbon placed at the Puerta de Alcala in Madrid, Spain, by the Collective of Lesbians, Gays, Transexuals and Bisexuals of Madrid (COGAM) EPA/J.P. GANDUL World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures South Korean middle school students hold umbrellas as they form a giant red ribbon during a ceremony to mark World AIDS Day in Seoul AFP PHOTO / JUNG YEON-JEJUNG YEON-JE/AFP/Getty Images World Aids Day 2015 around the world - in pictures Pakistani people hold placards as they attend a rally to create awareness in Peshawar Arshad Arbab/EPA

“But far more were simply citizens,“ Obama said, before listing the many people who have fought the disease and the ”courageous people living with HIV who led the fight to spare others the anguish of this disease.”

Finishing off, the former President added some levity — offering to let donors pilot Air Force One, or to give them a peek at top-secret files on aliens — before returning to a common theme for the community organizer turned powerful politician.