-
[FILE] A health official holds Lenacapavir, a long‑acting HIV prevention treatment, in Epworth outside the capital Harare.
President Cyril Ramaphosa is expected to launch the national rollout of Lenacapavir, a twice-yearly HIV prevention injectable, at the Lilian Ngoyi Stadium in Mpumalanga on Friday.
Lenacapavir is administered via injection every six months, offering continuous HIV protection per dose. The first batch of the medicine, consisting of 37 920 doses, arrived in South Africa in April 2026.
South Africa has one of the highest HIV infection rates in the world, with approximately eight million people currently infected.
The Presidency has described the treatment as a major breakthrough in the country’s fight against HIV.
The Department of Health says Lenacapavir would boost efforts to reduce new HIV infections and end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, in line with the Global AIDS Strategy for 2026–2030.
PODCAST | SANAC welcomes the arrival of Lenacapavir:
The six-monthly injectable is expected to expand HIV prevention choices and improve adherence, particularly among vulnerable groups, including adolescent girls and young women, sex workers, and men who have sex with men.
The Department described Lenacapavir as preventive medicine, not a vaccine, and one of the most significant HIV prevention advances in years.
Treatment Action Campaign Chairperson Sibongile Tshabalala says the medicine’s discreet administration is likely to increase uptake among those who faced stigma around existing prevention methods, such as oral PrEP.
“We have a number of preventative tools starting from condoms, PrEP, and other preventative tools that are not talked about a lot. This one, we believe that it will do much because it has less administration. So, for instance, when you are getting it, you’ll get it once every six months, which no one will know, unlike with PREP pills that people are having a stigma around. But with this one, it will be very discreet, you will just go to the facility and you get your injection and then you continue with your life,” Tshabalala said.
SA prepares for HIV prevention injections rollout:
