“Put people first is a reminder that the people we serve is at the very heart of our work” said Professor Sharon Lewin, International Co-Chairperson of world’s largest AIDS conference this year (25th International AIDS Conference or AIDS 2024). But when we look at the global HIV response, those people who are most at risk of the virus, are seldom receiving HIV and other health services with right, human dignity and without any stigma, discrimination or criminalisation.
That is why AIDS 2024 – for the first time in the history of such conferences – is dedicated an entire pre-conference on HIV key populations on the theme: “Demand and delivery: securing rights, funding and prevention,” said Michael Ighodaro, global Director of Global Black Gay Men Connect. Key populations are not only key because of their heightened risk of HIV acquisition but also key because key population-led interventions have proven to be most effective in delivering quality HIV and health services. HIV programmes that have genuinely engaged key populations in leadership and decision-making roles at all levels, have proven to be real game-changers when it comes to reaching-the-unreached and serving the best of quality-assured healthcare services.
Christine Stegling, UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director said: “We need to empower communities to advocate for prevention at both national and global levels. This is crucial for realizing human rights. We need to make noise (again) to ensure that addressing human rights is a crucial part of furthering biomedical interventions.”
Dr Nikolay Lunchenkov is a medical doctor who focusses on serving key populations. “Key populations are still highly stigmatised around the world including the region of my origin in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. We see more oppressive laws........