Unaids South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini

Unaids South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini Read the Global AIDS Strategy: http://bit.ly/2PjBaim UNAIDS Country Office supporting South Africa to Fast-Track the end of AIDS.

Connection is prevention. 🫶🏾When people feel seen, heard and supported, they are better able to reach out, access care a...
12/09/2026

Connection is prevention. 🫶🏾

When people feel seen, heard and supported, they are better able to reach out, access care and stay connected to the support they need.

For people living with HIV, mental health is an essential part of wellbeing. HIV-related stigma and discrimination can also create barriers to seeking services, support and care.

This September, as we mark Su***de Prevention Month and reflect on World Su***de Prevention Day, let’s help change the conversation — from silence and stigma to openness, empathy and support.

Listen. Connect. Support.

Because ending AIDS means addressing the whole person — with dignity, equality and care.

***dePrevention ***dePreventionDay

Planning for a sustainable HIV response, made in Eswatini, for Eswatini.Last week, the Steering Committee overseeing Esw...
07/09/2026

Planning for a sustainable HIV response, made in Eswatini, for Eswatini.

Last week, the Steering Committee overseeing Eswatini's HIV Sustainability Roadmap endorsed the Inception Report for Part B — the plan that will guide how the country implements its shift toward a more self-reliant, domestically-funded HIV response.

As international HIV funding declines globally, countries like Eswatini are working to ensure their hard-won progress against HIV is protected and sustained through stronger domestic ownership and financing.

The meeting was chaired by the Secretary to Cabinet and brought together 7 Principal Secretaries from key government departments, alongside civil society organisations and development partners — including UNAIDS.

This is what a country-led, collaborative response to a changing funding landscape looks like.

Charting South Africa's path to the 2030 HIV targets 📊This week, Dr. James Ndirangu of UNAIDS presented "2030 Access in ...
29/07/2026

Charting South Africa's path to the 2030 HIV targets 📊

This week, Dr. James Ndirangu of UNAIDS presented "2030 Access in Practice" at the HIV Prevention Workshop convened by SANAC, UNFPA and WHO.

The data tells a clear story: if South Africa reduces HIV prevention spending, new infections could climb to over 1 million by 2030. But if we meet both prevention and treatment targets, we could avert nearly 390,000 new infections.

Dr. Ndirangu also highlighted the urgent need to tackle HIV-related stigma and discrimination — which remains a major barrier to testing and treatment uptake, especially among adolescent girls and young women.

Bottom line: investing in prevention today isn't just the right thing to do — it's the cost-effective path to ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

28/07/2026

As a multi-country office, we are exceptionally proud of Lesotho & Eswatini for achieving the 95-95-95 targets, alongside 9 other countries globally!
We can as a public health threat. We can end new infections.

The new UNAIDS Special Report for the 26th International AIDS Conference has just been released — and it highlights Sout...
28/07/2026

The new UNAIDS Special Report for the 26th International AIDS Conference has just been released — and it highlights South Africa as a story of resilience amid global funding disruptions.

South Africa operates the largest PrEP (pre-exposure prophylaxis) programme in the world. As international funding for HIV prevention fell sharply across many countries in 2024–2025, South Africa's PrEP numbers held remarkably steady, declining by only 8% — a much smaller drop than seen elsewhere.

The country is also among those with the highest need for services to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV that have still achieved over 90% coverage.

On the financing side, South Africa is showing what domestic ownership of the HIV response looks like in practice: it contributed $36.6 million of the $51.6 million pledged by African countries at the Global Fund's Eighth Replenishment, through a public-private commitment. New international partnerships are also emerging to sustain the response, including a $3.49 million agreement with China to expand HIV prevention services.

As the world gathers to take stock of the global AIDS response, South Africa's numbers offer a clear lesson: sustained investment and strong domestic commitment can protect hard-won progress, even when the external funding landscape shifts.

This week, the AGYW HIV Prevention Design Think Lab brought together adolescent girls and young women, government repres...
22/07/2026

This week, the AGYW HIV Prevention Design Think Lab brought together adolescent girls and young women, government representatives, UN agencies, researchers, and civil society in Johannesburg for a powerful two-day co-creation process.

The goal? Move beyond consultation to genuine co-design — building an essential services framework for HIV prevention that reflects AGYW's real lives, choices, and the systems they navigate every day.

Over two days, country teams worked through evidence, lived experience, and practical delivery models to shape scalable, sustainable approaches — with AGYW themselves leading the accountability process to make sure these commitments turn into action.

This is what youth-led, evidence-informed HIV prevention looks like in practice.

As world leaders gather in New York for the United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, one message must remain at th...
23/06/2026

As world leaders gather in New York for the United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, one message must remain at the centre of the conversation:

Communities are not a footnote in the HIV response.

For decades, civil society organisations, networks of people living with HIV, community health workers and grassroots activists have driven progress, challenged inequality and ensured that services reach those who need them most.

Yet at a time of growing uncertainty and funding pressures, community-led responses are being asked to do more with less.

In his latest op-ed, Solly Nduku reminds us that ending AIDS will not be achieved through commitments alone. It requires meaningful partnership with the communities that have been at the forefront of the response from the very beginning.

The world has the tools to end AIDS.

What it needs now is the courage to invest in communities, protect human rights and turn promises into action.

Civil society will not be a footnote in New York.

It is central to the future of the HIV response.

Read the full op-ed here ----> https://mg.co.za/thought-leader/2026-06-22-why-the-hlm-matters-civil-society-will-not-be-a-footnote-in-new-york/

"I was born with HIV. Do not make decisions about me without me."For Nomonde Ngema , the HIV response is not a policy de...
22/06/2026

"I was born with HIV. Do not make decisions about me without me."

For Nomonde Ngema , the HIV response is not a policy debate. It is personal.

Born with HIV, Nomonde is part of a generation whose lives have been shaped by the decisions made by governments, donors and global health leaders. As the world gathers in New York for the United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, her message is clear: young people must not simply be consulted — they must be meaningfully included.

The decisions made today will determine access to prevention, treatment, care and support for millions of young people around the world.

Young people are not the future of the HIV response.

They are the present.

To end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, we must invest in youth leadership, support youth-led organisations and ensure that young people have a seat at every table where decisions are made.

Nothing about us without us.

Twenty-five years ago, Yvette Raphael was diagnosed with HIV.At the time, treatment was largely inaccessible, stigma was...
19/06/2026

Twenty-five years ago, Yvette Raphael was diagnosed with HIV.
At the time, treatment was largely inaccessible, stigma was widespread, and too many people were losing their lives.
Today, Yvette is still here.
But so is the fight.
As world leaders gather in New York for the United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, the stakes could not be higher. Every week, more than 3,300 adolescent girls and young women acquire HIV in sub-Saharan Africa. Yet the region carrying the greatest burden of the epidemic continues to face significant funding gaps.
In her latest op-ed, Yvette Raphael, Co-founder and Executive Director of the Advocacy for Prevention of HIV in Africa (APHA), reminds us that HIV does not spread in a vacuum. It thrives where inequality, stigma, discrimination and gender-based barriers persist.
The solutions are known.
Community-led responses work.
Investing in women and girls works.
Protecting human rights works.
The question is whether the world will act with the urgency this moment demands.
“We have come too far. We cannot stop now.”
Read Yvette Raphael’s op-ed: Why the High-Level Meeting on HIV Matters.

https://mg.co.za/thought-leader/2026-06-19-why-the-high-level-meeting-on-hiv-matters/

"The world has the tools to end AIDS," says Alankar Malviya, the UNAIDS Multi-Country Director for South Africa, Lesotho...
18/06/2026

"The world has the tools to end AIDS," says Alankar Malviya, the UNAIDS Multi-Country Director for South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini in his latest Op-ed featured in the

Today's Op-Ed is one of five key voices on why the HLM matters so that we may remain

From groundbreaking prevention innovations like lenacapavir to decades of evidence on what works, science has given us the means to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

What stands in the way is not a lack of solutions. It is a lack of political will, sustained funding and commitment to the communities leading the response.

As world leaders gather in New York for the United Nations High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, the choices they make will determine whether progress accelerates or whether hard-won gains are put at risk.

"The tools to end AIDS exist. The science is powerful. What stands between where we are and where we need to be is political will." — Alankar Malviya, UNAIDS Multi-Country Director for South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini.

The world cannot afford to lose this moment.

Address

351 Francis Baard Street, Metropark Building, 5th Floor
Pretoria
0001

Opening Hours

Monday 09:00 - 17:00
Tuesday 09:00 - 17:00
Wednesday 09:00 - 17:00
Thursday 09:00 - 17:00
Friday 09:00 - 17:00

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Unaids South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Organization

Send a message to Unaids South Africa, Lesotho and Eswatini:

Shortcuts

Share