Summary & Key Points
"A delegation of eight people, including seven from PAC-CI and one from a partner NGO, traveled to Yaoundé to attend AFRAVIH from April 16 to 19, 2024."
A delegation of eight people, seven from PAC-CI and one from a partner NGO, traveled to Yaoundé to attend AFRAVIH from April 16 to 19, 2024. This 12th International Francophone Conference on HIV, STIs, sexual and reproductive health was the first edition to take place in sub-Saharan Francophone Africa.
After the missed 2020 Dakar meeting due to COVID-19, Cameroon had the honor of hosting this 12th AFRAVIH conference at the Yaoundé Conference Center. It drew approximately one thousand participants.
The theme of this 12th edition, “Engaging in dialogue on HIV within communities,” provided an opportunity for Francophone researchers and policymakers to come together around the latest scientific developments. It also brought together the community and advocacy sectors to discuss the best ways to continue combating discrimination and ensuring equal access to care for all.
Following the opening session, the program—featuring plenary sessions, parallel oral sessions, symposia, poster discussion sessions (a new feature of this conference), poster and exhibit hall visits led by various HIV stakeholders—enabled participants to exchange ideas on a range of topics.
PAC-CI’s contribution to AFRAVIH was multifaceted, including facilitating sessions, delivering oral and poster presentations, organizing working meetings, and meeting with partners.
Dr. Moh, PAC-CI’s Executive Director, used his remarks to call on colleagues to pool their knowledge on HIV in older adults in order to develop a strategy for better care.
Christine Katlama, AFRAVIH Chair, echoed this sentiment in her closing address, urging researchers, policymakers, and associations to unite, end discrimination, and protect vulnerable people living with HIV: “As a community, we must stand together and declare loudly that the HIV pandemic will only end when fear of discrimination, social rejection, and intolerance of difference recedes, and when all communities embrace the protection of vulnerable individuals rather than their repression.”
Impressed by the quality and richness of the exchanges at this international conference, the PAC-CI Program leadership believes it would be beneficial to hold a debriefing session soon to identify key takeaways and recommendations to guide its upcoming research and intervention activities, ensuring they better address population health needs.
