"We are excited to announce that Zimbabwe was selected as one of the 10 countries globally to roll out lenacapavir, a breakthrough development in the fight against HIV," the US Embassy in Harare said in a post on X. Zimbabwe has one of the highest HIV prevalence rates in the world, with 1.3 million people living with the condition, according to figures from UNAIDS, the United Nations program on HIV/AIDS."
"The southern African nation recently met the UNAIDS 9595-95 fast-track targets, meaning that 95% of those living with HIV know their status; 95% of those who know they have HIV are on life-saving anti-retroviral treatment; and 95% of people on treatment achieve viral suppression. Ponesai Nyika, a public health expert with extensive experience in HIV/AIDS research and program implementation, told DW that Zimbabwe has a "very solid HIV response infrastructure." The introduction of lenacapavir is expected to greatly boost Zimbabwe's efforts to eradicate infections."
"Why is lenacapavir considered a game changer? The World Health Organization (WHO) hails lenacapavir as a transformative step forward in protecting people at risk of HIV. "While an HIV vaccine remains elusive, lenacapavir is the next best thing: a long-acting antiretroviral shown in trials to prevent almost all HIV infections among those at risk," said the WHO's director general, Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus."
Zimbabwe was selected as one of ten countries for the initial rollout of lenacapavir, the first twice-yearly injectable HIV prophylactic. Rollout will target people susceptible to HIV, including adolescent girls and those who are pregnant and breastfeeding. Zimbabwe has about 1.3 million people living with HIV and recently met the UNAIDS 95-95-95 fast-track targets, reflecting high diagnosis, treatment, and viral suppression coverage. Public health experts cite a very solid HIV response infrastructure and partnerships such as PEPFAR as foundations for successful introduction. The WHO calls lenacapavir a transformative, long-acting antiretroviral that prevents almost all infections in trials.
Read at www.dw.com
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