{"id":39,"date":"2025-08-02T17:03:04","date_gmt":"2025-08-02T17:03:04","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/?p=39"},"modified":"2025-08-02T17:03:05","modified_gmt":"2025-08-02T17:03:05","slug":"over-3000-delegates-from-100-countries-gather-in-kigali-for-global-hiv-aids-conference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/?p=39","title":{"rendered":"Over 3,000 Delegates from 100+ Countries Gather in Kigali for Global HIV\/AIDS Conference"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">More than <strong>3,000 health experts, researchers, and advocates<\/strong> from over <strong>100 countries<\/strong> are meeting in <strong>Kigali, Rwanda<\/strong> for the <strong>International AIDS Society Conference (IAS2025)<\/strong>, a major global summit focused on strategies to fight <strong>HIV\/AIDS<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The conference comes at a critical time, nearly five years after the <strong>United States<\/strong> announced it would <strong>cease its collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO)<\/strong>, prompting renewed dialogue on <strong>sustainable, locally-driven solutions<\/strong> to HIV prevention and treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>A Call for Sustainable Investment in Health Systems<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Janet Bhila<\/strong>, a public health advocate from <strong>Zimbabwe<\/strong>, reminded participants that before global donors stepped in, local health organizations were the first responders in the fight against HIV\/AIDS.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIn this economic crisis, partnerships and volunteerism alone can no longer sustain HIV services,\u201d she said.<br>\u201cThere must be long-term investment in community-led health systems to ensure that people living with HIV can continue to access quality care.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Regional Efforts Show Positive Progress<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Dr. Mina Nakawuka<\/strong>, a senior HIV\/AIDS care coordinator from <strong>Uganda\u2019s Ministry of Health<\/strong>, discussed the <strong>integration of HIV services<\/strong> in local health centers and praised the reduced <strong>stigma against people living with HIV<\/strong> in Uganda.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cWe\u2019ve seen a significant decline in stigma, and that\u2019s a promising step toward inclusive healthcare,\u201d she noted.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Voices from South Africa Applaud the Conference<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Dr. Ntombifikile Nokwethemba Mtshali<\/strong>, CEO of <strong>Shout It Now<\/strong>, and <strong>Paul Postane<\/strong>, Head of South Africa\u2019s National HIV Program, both expressed their excitement about participating in the conference.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cIAS2025 offers a powerful platform for collaboration and innovation in ending HIV transmission,\u201d they stated.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Access to PrEP a Major Topic of Discussion<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">One of the <strong>key agenda items<\/strong> is expanding <strong>access to PrEP (Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis)<\/strong> \u2014 a preventive medication for people at high risk of HIV \u2014 especially as <strong>foreign aid becomes more unpredictable<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">IAS leaders emphasized that despite funding shifts, <strong>collaborative discussions<\/strong> are essential to ensure <strong>lifesaving HIV prevention services<\/strong> like PrEP remain available, affordable, and effective.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cAcross the board, there is agreement that long-term solutions are needed to maintain access to PrEP,\u201d organizers said.<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>WHO Pushes for Integrated and Scalable Health Services<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Nathan Ford<\/strong>, a senior WHO official, reiterated the importance of aligning service delivery across healthcare systems.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<blockquote class=\"wp-block-quote is-layout-flow wp-block-quote-is-layout-flow\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">\u201cThe goal should be modern, efficient, and integrated services built on country-led strategies,\u201d he explained.<br>\u201cFuture WHO guidelines must reflect what is working on the ground.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n<hr class=\"wp-block-separator has-alpha-channel-opacity\"\/>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Conference Runs Until July 17, 2025<\/strong><\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The IAS2025 conference, which continues through <strong>July 17<\/strong>, aims to chart new paths for preventing and managing HIV in a changing global health landscape. As funding structures shift, experts agree that <strong>resilience, innovation, and collaboration<\/strong> will be key to sustaining the progress made over the last decades.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>More than 3,000 health experts, researchers, and advocates from over 100 countries are meeting in Kigali, Rwanda for the International AIDS Society Conference (IAS2025), a major global summit focused on&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":40,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-39","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=39"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":41,"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/39\/revisions\/41"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/40"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=39"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=39"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/waramutse.icu\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=39"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}