‘HIV prevention injectable drug must go to people in need’

Yinjongo Yesizwe Foundation Executive Director Nontyatyambo Makapela says they are excited and welcome the announcement by President Cyril Ramaphosa around the massive rollout of the Lenacapavir injectable drug that has been proven effectively in terms of the HIV prevention options.

Ramaphosa made the announcement during his State of the Nation Address (SONA) at Parliament on Thursday.

Makapela says the foundation believes in different types of prevention, so the bio-medical aspect is welcomed but community mobilisation is important.

She says, “An organisation like ours does a lot of work in terms of the community education and awareness on HIV prevention and SRHR (Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights), but to also create demand, and do the community mobilisation in making sure there an improve update on prevention services especially for adolescence and young people, and we believe that if the government is going to prioritise the people who are vulnerable and key populations who are in need of the this HIV prevention option.”

Makapela says the different tools that are available do not work for everybody.

She says, “We call on the government to also think of the people who are in rural areas, the young adolescent women in rural areas, who may not have access of the HIV prevention options that are available here, they should be at the forefront, they should be proritised more, you know, including the sex workers, the key population.”

“We are so excited to see that government is committed in terms of the massive roll out, but lets go to people in need and create an environment that is safe, that is very non-judgmental, you know in terms of people coming forth upfront to say, we are so interested to be part of this intervention, so lets make sure that we sensitise the health care workers so that we have friendly service provisions that will be available even for the marginalised communities, otherwise we are so excited.” Makapela adds.

GBV SHELTERS

Gender-based Violence (GBV) activist Cynthia Dinalane says Ramaphosa has been making promises build shelters for victims for years.

During the SONA address, he committed to scaling up survivor-centred support, ensuring access to shelters, one-stop service centres, mobile and rural outreach, and the placement of social workers in police stations.

Ramaphosa also announced that government will strengthen law enforcement through faster investigation, improved case management,
expanded sexual offences courts and action against repeat offenders.

Dinalane says, “The President has been saying this every time when we have the State of the Nation and nothing is happening, so I’m not even happy and I’m not even convinced because this is something that he usually says now and then but nothing is happening. Shelters are not taken care of, we have social workers sitting at home without jobs, now we are suffering.”

She says she does not have confidence and is not convinced with what the President has said.

“If he is saying that can he act without talking because talking is cheap, but there is no action. So if he can act them I believe him, for now I don’t believe him, if you can check all the State of the Nation Addresses, all of them since he was President, he was talking about that but nothing is happening.”