News

This letter comes from a group of young African women and reflects their HIV prevention research priorities. It was submitted to the National Institutes of Health’s (NIH) Division of AIDS (DAIDS) during the open-comment period concerning the structure and agenda for its next funding cycle (2021-2027).

The newly released movie focuses on five women living with HIV and their journeys in accessing treatment, legal aid, finding services, receiving legal aid and providing care.

This World AIDS Day, Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka calls for a commitment to prioritize and reach all the women and girls being left behind in the HIV response.

This World AIDS Day, Executive Director of UNAIDS Michel Sidibé highlights the importance of the right to health and the challenges that people living with and affected by HIV face in fulfilling that right.

In this statement, the International Partnership for Microbicides calls for an expansion for women's HIV prevention options so they can stay healthy and thrive.

The International Community of Women Living with HIV (ICW) asks policy makers to support interventions that promote access to the right to health for all women and girls, especially those living with HIV.

At the ICW Latina forum in Costa RIca, Luiz Lourez, Deputy Executive Director of UNAIDS, addressed the linkages between gender-based violence, discrimination and increased HIV infection among young women in Latin America.

In South Africa, adolescent girls and young women are becoming infected with HIV at 8 times the rate of their male peers. The opening of Adolescent and Youth Friendly Services aims to promote a welcoming environment for youth in the community to access health services.

In Papa New Guinea, the risk of acquiring HIV is up to 7 times higher in women with violent or controlling intimate partners. Gender-based violence affects the ability of women and girls to protect themselves from HIV infection, prevent unintended pregnancies or access HIV prevention services.

The Canadian Aboriginal AIDS Network will launch Aboriginal AIDS Awareness Week the first week of December. During this week, they will raise awareness on HIV prevention and key affected populations in Canada, including indigenous women and young people living with HIV.

Civil society organisations working on HIV and human rights in Africa recently condemned the enactment of repressive laws which often include provisions that criminalise HIV transmission, non-disclosure and exposure. In many contexts, these laws have a disproportionately punitive effect on women.

A conference at the Morehouse School of Medicine in Atlanta, Georgia takes a women-centred approach towards HIV and reproductive health, specifically addressing the stagnant rates of HIV infection in African American women.

Recent data shows that young women, ages 15-24 years are twice as likely to become infected with HIV than men of the same age. Women continue to be left behind in the progress against HIV. Investing in prevention technologies designed for women and girls would prioritize their needs and address many inequalities they face in the flight against HIV/AIDS.

The Eastern Cape Province of South Africa is hosting a two-day HIV Prevention Programme for Young Adolescent Girls and Women. This meeting will allow young women and girls to spotlight issues that contribute to HIV infections and teenage pregnancy in the province.

The Philippines' Commission on Population (POPCOM) is reaching more young people in their campaign to address teenage pregnancy and HIV through short films to be shared with policy makers, civil society organizations, community members and schools.

A meeting with UNAIDS and women living with HIV in Abuja, Nigeria addressed the need to have coordinated and concerted efforts to scale up interventions for women living with HIV in the sub-region.

On the Day of Action to End Violence Against Women Living with HIV, the Positive Women's Network (USA) highlighted the intersections between economic security, health and violence against women living with HIV.

The Positive Women's Network - USA is using multimedia technology to support recently diagnosed or isolated women living with HIV as they seek answers through their new project, #PWNCares. In a series of short videos, women with HIV, including women of trans experience, will share their experiences, wisdom they have learned through years of living with the virus and encouragement for women who are struggling with their diagnosis.

HIV is the leading cause of death among girls, aged 15-19, in South Africa with 2,300 girls infected every week. Adolescent girls and young women face a toxic brew of inequality, unemployment and aggressive hyper-masculinity that creates massive levels of violence against women and increases their vulnerability to HIV infection.

Leading HIV and AIDS researchers, Professors Salim and Quarraisha Abdool Karim, have been named the recipients of the esteemed Institute for Human Virology (IHV) Lifetime Achievement Award. They are renowned for their scientific contributions in HIV prevention and treatment, focused on trying to prevent HIV in women in Africa.