Cyril Ramaphosa will be joined by health minister Aaron Motsoaledi, premier Mandla Ndlovu, and leaders of civil society organisations. The first batch of the six-monthly injectable arrived in the country in April.

Lenacapavir will boost the country’s efforts to reduce new HIV infections to end Aids as a public health threat by 2030 and sustain the HIV response after 2030 in line with the Global Aids Strategy for 2026 to 2030.

It is expected to expand HIV prevention choices, improve adherence, especially amongst the most vulnerable priority groups, including adolescent girls and young women, sex workers, and men having sex with men.

“This groundbreaking initiative marks a significant milestone in South Africa’s ongoing efforts to fight against HIV/Aids and aims to enhance the prevention of new HIV infections,” said the presidency in a statement.

“Lenacapavir is a twice-yearly long-acting injectable option for HIV prevention, and the rollout highlights the collaboration between the government, civil society, the private sector, and development partners amongst the stakeholders committed to ending HIV as a public health threat in South Africa.”

The injection has been shown to reduce the risk of HIV transmission by more than 99%. It is administered under the skin every six months. It is a preventive medicine, not a vaccine, considered one of the most exciting HIV prevention advances in years.

Approximately 40-million people worldwide are living with the virus, of whom almost a quarter live in South Africa. About 1.3-million new cases are diagnosed each year.

The first-in-human clinical trial of a new HIV vaccine was officially launched in Cape Town in February, marking a historic milestone for Africa. The country has an estimated 8-million people living with HIV, the most of any country in absolute numbers.

“We are in a position where we dare say we can eliminate HIV/Aids as a public health threat,” said Motsoaledi. “All we have to do is to work hard together as South Africans, motivated and bound together by a common destiny.

“We have specifically targeted the following categories of our population for prioritisation: adolescent girls and young women up to age 24 years, pregnant and breastfeeding mothers, female sex workers, men having sex with men, transgender people, and injecting drug users.”

OFM News/Zenande Mpame sm

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