SA receives first batch of HIV prevention medicine
The Minister of Health, Dr Aaron Motsoaledi, will in consultation with the President, announce the date for the launch to be led by President Cyril Ramaphosa.
The Department of Health welcomed the arrival of the first batch HIV
prevention medicine, Lenacapavir in South Africa, which consists of 37 920 doses.
This is part of integrated, differentiated and people-centred HIV prevention services
which offer new hope for people who face barriers to existing HIV prevention methods, the department said.
According to the Department, 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 2026–2030.
This six-monthly injectable has arrived in the country last week on Thursday and is
expected to expand HIV prevention choices and improve adherence especially amongst
the most vulnerable priority groups.
The Department will in the next few weeks announce the official launch where the phased implementation plan will be outlined.
Lenacapavir is preventive medicine, not a vaccine, considered one of the most exciting HIV
prevention advances in years, the Department concluded.
