African leaders converged in Tanzania at a high-level meeting to champion the role of young women in the global HIV response.
UN Women and the Government of Tanzania, who co-hosted the meeting affirmed that girls and women are disproportionately affected by HIV.
“Today launches an important new phase in women’s leadership in the effort against HIV/AIDS, it will ensure that the voices of women and girls of all ages who are disproportionately affected by HIV inform decision-making around the HIV response and that their needs are met.” said Ms. Sima Bahous, Executive Director of UN Women.
Moreover, this meeting was supported by the US President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). During the meeting, it was discovered that in sub-Saharan Africa, girls between ages 15 to 24 years are three times more likely to acquire HIV than boys.
The meeting was held to mark the International Day of the Girl Child.
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Additionally, in 2021, every two minutes an adolescent girl or young woman was newly infected with HIV – an estimated 4,900 new infections weekly.
The meeting saw the attendance of emerging young women leaders, women ministers, and leaders in health, education, and gender equality from 15 countries where girls and young women experience disproportionately high rates of new HIV infections.
Furthermore, the disproportionate vulnerability was associated with persistent gender inequalities, stigma, and discrimination, gender-based violence, child marriage, unpaid care work responsibilities, barriers to education and employment opportunities.
Likewise, these factors were further worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic which also hindered access to HIV prevention and treatment services.
While speaking at the high-level meeting, Tanzanian Minister of Health and Gender, Dorothy Gwajima urged leaders to mentor young women to build a future leadership which is strong.
“We should open doors and invest in building their skills and confidence so they can make positive changes in their communities and countries,” she said.
While giving his recommendations to address the alarming incidence of HIV, US Global AIDS Coordinator and Special Representative for Health Diplomacy Ambassador John Nkengasong, who also oversees PEPFAR noted that to end the HIV/AIDS pandemic, we must tackle inequities that leave adolescent girls and young women vulnerable.
Dr. Nkengasong further stated that PEPFAR, through its programmes like DREAMS would expand efforts to empower women and build partnerships at the community level which eradicate barriers that increase the risk of contracting HIV.
According to him, PEPFAR would expand its investment to close known gaps in HIV prevention by 20 percent for the fiscal year 2023.
Countries represented by the women leaders included: Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. Additional partners who supported the meeting in Tanzania included the African Women’s Leaders Network, the United Nations Tanzania, and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS).
