Mr. Karim expressed the importance of scientific evidence for formulating policies and programme in order to improve the UNAIDS vision of the end of AIDS, a current public health threat, by 2030. Soon after, the moderate passed the floor to the keynote speakers.

In the keynote speaker series, Ms. Diane Havlir explained the current medication on combating AIDS. She introduced the concept of “Test & Treat” strategy together with the targets by 2020, on advancing diagnosis, treatment, and suppression to 90% efficacy against AIDS. She ended by reassuring Antiretroviral Treatment (ART) was a powerful intervention to control the epidemic, which could, in turn, provide enormous health and economic benefits to the society, with the aids of political compliance and continuous investment. Ms. Quarraisha Abdool Karim was soon granted the floor. She described an overview on combination prevention on AIDS. She revealed a single strategy could not attain a 100% prevention. Moreover, she emphasized different contexts required various mixing of HIV prevention strategies. She concluded by affirming the value of understanding risks and drivers for local settings so that a customized and appropriate approach could effectively proceed. The floor of keynote speaker series was then shifted to the panelist discussion.

To start with, Mr. Wafaa El-Sadr underscored taking science into action was fundamental. He explained by the using country compliance on WHO guideline as an example, to assert the importance of implementing science and scaling-up the strategy on policy formulation. Then, Mr. Chris Beyrer disclosed the current challenge on AIDS was the social stigma. Lacking access to medical service and ignorance to vulnerable groups would worsen the HIV epidemic. Soon after, Ms. Madiarra Offia-Coulibaly elucidated the role of NGO in reaching the scientific innovation. She pointed out the information widespread to the civil society was crucial to prevent further discrimination and enhance the health-care service access. After that, Ms. Betsy McKay indicated the media challenge on AIDS reduction was the complex information that hindered the translation work. A big picture was needed for media workers to turn complex information into simple illustration. Last but not least, the moderator summed up by addressing the encouragement on evidence-based approach and science support to end the AIDS.

Meeting: 2016 High-level meeting on the End of AIDS as a Global Health Threat held by The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS

Date/Time/Location: Tuesday, June 7, 2016; 13:00-15:00; Conference Room 3

Speakers: Mr. Salim Abdool Karim, Moderator, Director CAPRISA; Ms. Diane Havlir, Chief of HIV, Infectious Diseases and Global Medicine, University of California (San Francisco); Ms. Quarraisha Abdool Karim, Associate Scientific Direct, CAPRISA; Ms. Waffa El-Safr, Director of ICAP & Professor of Epidemiology & Global health, Columbia University; Mr. Chris Beyrer, Professor PBH & Human Rights, Johns Hopkins School of PBH; Ms. Madiarra Offia-Coulibaly, Executive director, AIDS Alliance; Ms. Betsy McKay, Senior special writer, Wall Street Journal

Written By: Ho Ka Ki (Kelvin), WIT Representative

Edited By: Modou Cham, WIT Administrator

Photo: UNAIDS