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HIV/AIDS: Meeting Unmet Needs in Treatment and Prevention
organized in observance of
World AIDS Day
Tuesday, 5 December 2023 Trusteeship
Council, UNHQ
3:00 - 5:00 p.m., EST
Event Description
As world leaders continue to strategize on how to build back
better from the impacts of the COVID-19, it is imperative
that we do not let short- term post pandemic measures
prevent us from addressing the longer-term needs in
treatment and prevention of HIV/ AIDS.
Over the past two and a half years, the colliding AIDS and
COVID-19 pandemics—along with economic and humanitarian
crises—have placed the global HIV response under increasing
threat.
In 2021, 38.4 million people worldwide were living with HIV.
While there has been a decline in the number of individuals
acquiring HIV globally, some regions and population groups
have experienced significant increases in cases in recent
years. These increases have also come at a time of turmoil
with the COVID-19 pandemic alongside various other economic
and humanitarian crises exacerbating the difficulties of
fighting HIV/AIDS.
The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted HIV care delivery
globally and where resources and internet connection are
available, caregivers have moved to telemedicine (video,
telephone visits) to maintain HIV treatment adherence and
care engagement. This, however, has not been the case in
many countries around the world. These disruptions have
emphasized the importance of the global health response to
HIV.
Disproportionate infection rates among vulnerable
populations and particularly those in developing countries,
have in turn, reduced some individuals’ ability to receive
treatment or prevention resources. Some of the biggest
obstacles to fighting the HIV pandemic that have been
identified are the number of people who do not know they are
infected, the stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS, the lack of
access to affordable testing, treatment, and prevention
resources, and getting countries to put significant effort
and financing into meeting the needs of those at risk.
The event brings together representatives from civil
society, health practitioners, specialists, and the UN
system at the forefront of meeting the unmet needs of those
with HIV/AIDS and those who could be potentially exposed.
Discussion will highlight the current state of HIV/AIDS
globally, key obstacles that have been preventing those who
need care from getting it, and how to overcome those
obstacles and meet the treatment and prevention needs of
those living with or potentially exposed to HIV on an
individual, community, state, and global level. Featured
speakers will share their experiences and give insight into
the session theme.
What is required:
·
Resilient recovery from the impacts of the COVID-19 will not
be possible without conscious efforts to boost global
resilience on all fronts: social, economic, scientific,
innovative and technological.
·
It is indeed imperative to take strategically calculated and
measurable collective actions to support the efforts of
developing countries in special situations.
·
Support should be in the form of partnerships, research and
development.
Event Objectives:
The event is intended to provide a platform for the exchange
of views, sharing of experiences, and setting shared goals
and, indeed targets towards addressing the effects of
meeting unmet needs in the treatment and prevention of
HIV/AIDS, and achieving the targets of the 2039 Agenda for
Sustainable Development; particularly those related to
Health.
Accordingly, the event is expected to provide a platform for
member states to:
·
Highlight challenges that those in developing countries
face.
·
Take stick of progress made and share experiences.
·
Articulate viable solutions to the effects on the gaps on
women and girls in developing countries and in vulnerable
situations, and how to address these challenges; and
·
Reflect on how to ensure that the effect of the COVID-19
pandemic and the increasing frequency of inadequate needs in
treatment and prevention do not result in leaving women and
girls behind in the global efforts to achieve the 2030
Agenda , Africa Agenda 2063 and other regional development
agendas.
Expected Outcomes:
·
It is expected that the side event would:
·
Deepen dialogue among member states, representatives of
developing countries; HIV/AIDS organizations, critical
stakeholders, and development partners on how to maintain
resilience to the unmet needs of treatment and prevention in
HIV/AIDS;
·
Synthesize views expressed by participants and present the
key findings as possible policy recommendations for
mitigating the unmet needs in HIV/AIDS treatment and
prevention in the socioeconomic live wires of communities
globally
Event Scenario
The
event is intended to provide a platform for the exchange of
views, sharing of experiences, and setting shared goals and,
indeed targets towards addressing the effects of meeting
unmet needs in the treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS, and
achieving the targets of the 2039 Agenda for Sustainable
Development; particularly those related to Health.
Welcome and Introductions:
3:00 pm - 3:05 pm Moderator Welcome, Dr. Ugoji A
Eze, Esq, Founder and CEO Renew Our Earth, Member
African Bar Association and New York City Bar Association
3:05 pm - 3:15 pm Opening Remarks,
Angeli Achrekar,
Deputy Executive Director of the Programme Branch at the
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, UNAIDS and
Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations. (10
mins)
Panel Discussion: HIV/AIDS: Meeting Unmet Needs in Treatment
and Prevention
Speakers: (2
mins each intro)
3:15 pm - 3:30 pm
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Antonio Urbina,
MD, Mount Sinai; Associate Professor of Medicine, Icahn
School of Medicine
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Emma Kaplan-Lewis,
Clinical Quality Director HIV Services at NYC Health and
Hospitals
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Toyin Falusi Nwafor,
MD, Regional Medical Director, NAMA
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Raymond Ayala,
Medical Case Manager, Path, The Brooklyn Hospital Center
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Nkwenti Guedem Edwige,
Nurse Practitioner and HIV Specialist
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Folaranmi Ogunbowale,
UN Medical Unit
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