aidsfocus news

June 2015

Jun 26, 2015

ELECTORNIC BULLETIN OF THE SWISS PLATFORM ON HIV/AIDS AND INTERNATIONAL COOPERATION

Young, indigent, HIV-positiv

Dear aidsfocus.ch reader

In Zimbabwe, a country led by the dictator Robert Mugabe, people experience hunger, unemployment, and energy shortages. For many years, the country suffers from an incredible hyperinflation. Suddenly there were bills with the amounts of up to 100 billion (Zimbabwe-) dollars. At that time, a loaf of bread cost 550 million US dollars, on the black market ten million. In order to eliminate the money chaos, Zimbabwe is now abandoning its own dollars definitively and replaces it with the US dollar. Until September, citizens can now exchange 250.000.000.000.000 (in words: two hundred and fifty billion) Zimbabwe Dollars against one US dollar ...

The once strong population growth has come to a virtual standstill since the turn of the century due to the extreme economic difficulties of the country and the AIDS epidemic. Zimbabwe has one of the largest HIV epidemics in the world, with an estimated adult HIV prevalence of 15%. Two thirds of the population in Zimbabwe is under 25 years and HIV prevalence is almost three times higher among women aged 15 to 24 than among men of the same age.

Shocking conditions! Once again, the political will is needed to be able to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030. Mr Parirenyatwa, the ministry of health in Zimbabwe, reaffirmed the government’s commitment to build a concerted strategy to Fast-Track programmes to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030.

Our partner organization Swiss Aids Care International has worked in Zimbabwe for many years. Headed by Prof. Ruedi Lüthy an outpatient clinic and a training center has been set up in the capital, Harare under difficult conditions. Today in the Newlands Clinic approximately 5,300 patients receive comprehensive care. Janine Haas travelled for Swiss Aids Care International to Harare and visited young people living with HIV. Read her exciting report on "young, indigent, HIV positive: a report from Zimbabwe".

Carine Weiss, MSc MIH

Coordinator of aidsfocus.ch

Project leader at Medicus Mundi Schweiz

cweiss@medicusmundi.ch

Topic of the month

International news

Reports and Studies

Events

Topic of the month

June 2015 - Topic of the month: Young, indigent, HIV-positive: A report from Zimbabwe

Zimbabwe has one of the highest HIV-rates in the world. 15 % of the population is infected. In the Newlands Clinic in Harare, which is founded by the Swiss medical doctor Professor Ruedi Lüthy, over 5500 patients are treated. Treating children and adolescents are especially challenging for the medical staff.

International news

Zimbabwe’s accelerated response to HIV

UNAIDS, 9 June 2015: Zimbabwe has one of the largest HIV epidemics in the world, with an estimated adult HIV prevalence of 15% and 1.4 million people living with HIV. However, the country is accelerating action and increasing investment in its HIV prevention and treatment programmes to reverse this situation.

New formulation of HIV treatment to save more children’s lives -- UNICEF and UNAIDS

NEW YORK/GENEVA, 5 June 2015—Children affected by HIV and AIDS will benefit from the decision by the United States Food and Drug Administration to grant approval to a new antiretroviral formulation that can be mixed with food to make it easier for children living with HIV to take the life-saving medicines, UNAIDS and UNICEF said today.

Reports and Studies

World must drastically accelerate AIDS efforts or face more HIV infections and deaths than five years ago—says UNAIDS and Lancet Commission

UNAIDS–Lancet Commission, London, 25 June 2015 - Countries most affected by HIV must focus on stopping new HIV infections and expanding access to antiretroviral treatment or risk the epidemic rebounding, urges a major new report from the UNAIDS and Lancet Commission.

New British guidelines recommend treatment for everyone with HIV

aidsmap.com, June 2015 - Everyone with HIV who is prepared to take antiretroviral treatment should receive it, regardless of CD4 cell count, new draft British HIV Association (BHIVA) treatment guidelines recommend.

Empower young women and adolescent girls: Fast-Track the end of the AIDS epidemic in Africa

UNAIDS, June 2015 - Fast-tracking the end of the AIDS epidemic by 2030 requires strong political leadership and commitment to stop new infections and deaths among young women and adolescent girls and eliminate mother to child transmission of HIV.

Funders' priorities and targets hindered community mobilisation and meaningful participation of sex workers in India

aidsmap.com, Juni 2015 - "Two qualitative studies, investigating the implementation of a massive programme of HIV prevention through community mobilisation in India, have identified challenges to the rapid scale-up and roll-out of a programme in which grassroots action was meant to be central.

Harm reduction for people who inject drugs in New York has worked, but hasn’t reduced racial inequality

aidsmap.com, May 2015 - "Needle and syringe exchange and opiate substitution therapy in New York City has worked in reducing HIV infection in people who inject drugs (PWIDs) to the extent of almost abolishing HIV infection in white people who inject drugs, a recent study published in PLOS One shows.

Acute HIV infection may present in many ways – sometimes as a serious illness

aidsmap.com, May 2015 - "A Swiss study of people who were diagnosed during early HIV infection has found that a quarter of them presented or developed a wide variety of non-typical early symptoms of HIV infection, many of them serious and a few life-threatening.

Events

8th IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention (IAS 2015)

IAS - The International AIDS Society will lead the 8th IAS Conference on HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention (IAS 2015) held in Vancouver, Canada from 19 - 22 July 2015. This year’s conference, hosted in partnership with the University of British Columbia Centre for Excellence in HIV/AIDS, is expected to bring together more than 6,000 participants from over 125 countries.

9th European Congress on Tropical Medicine and International Health

Basel, 6 September 2015 - The 9th European Congress on Tropical Medicine and International Health brings together some 2’000 of the most distinguished scientists and experts in the field of tropical medicine and international health. It is the premier European congress in this field.

Studienreise nach Zimbabwe

FEPA - Herzliche Einladung zur zweiwöchigen Studienreise vom 3.-18. Oktober 2015 mit fepa nach Zimbabwe. Ziel der Reise sind Begegnungen mit ProjektpartnerInnen von fepa in Zimbabwe.

aidsfocus.ch is a platform set up by the Network Medicus Mundi Switzerland. aidsfocus.ch is sponsored and shaped by its 22 partner organizations who support the aims and activities of the platform through their financial contributions, expertise and commitment. It is financially supported by the Swiss Agency for Development and Cooperation (SDC).

Partner organisations: AIDS & Child, CO-OPERAID, FEPA, Fédération Genevoise de Coopération, Gemeinschaft St. Anna-Schwestern, IAMANEH Switzerland, Kindernothilfe Schweiz, Kwa Wazee, mediCuba-Suisse, mission 21, SolidarMed, Swiss Aids Care International, Swiss Aids Federation, Swiss Catholic Lenten Fund, Swiss Catholic Womens League, Swiss MIVA, Swiss Red Cross, Swiss Tropical and Public Health Institute (SwissTPH), Tear Fund, Terre des hommes Foundation, terre des hommes schweiz, and World Vision Switzerland.