NACOSA at #AIDS2022

NACOSA was privileged to be represented at the International AIDS Conference in Montreal, Canada. Many of our colleagues from other parts of Africa were not able to attend because they were denied visas or refused entry, underscoring once again the unacceptable inequities in global health responses. We were there to share some of our learnings working with key and vulnerable populations in South Africa and also to gain insights from the global AIDS community on how we “re-engage and follow the science”. The Covid-19 pandemic has dealt a blow to the progress we were making on HIV, AIDS and TB – the activism, science and community engagement on display at the conference has helped to reinvigorate the AIDS response.

Oral abstract session

NACOSA’s Young People Specialist, Ndumiso Madubela, presented an abstract on the impact of a gender-based violence intervention on young men at the oral abstract session: Is violence a breaking point for HIV?

A behaviour-based intervention investigating the effects of a gender-based violence (GBV) and sexual assault educational curriculum on improving male attitudes toward women in 4 sub districts in South Africa

ePoster abstracts

NACOSA had the following ePosters on display:

INTEGRATING HEPATITIS SERVICES 

Integrating hepatitis services into community based opioid substitution therapy in three South African cities: interim findings on feasibility and HIV and viral hepatitis C prevalence by Key Populations Manager, Leora Casey

SAFE SPACES FOR YOUNG WOMEN

Improving acceptability, accessibility, feasibility and the uptake of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services amongst young people through community safe spaces methodology by Young People Specialist, Kgahliso Mangoale

LIVELIHOODS INTERVENTIONS TO REDUCE HIV RISK

Economic Livelihoods interventions as a strategy to reduce HIV vulnerability risks by Young People Specialist, Tracy Pillay

JOURNALLING AND RISK PERCEPTION

Charting the journey: shifting young women’s HIV risk perception with journaling by Head of Communications Sophie Hobbs

COMBINATION PREVENTION WITH YOUNG WOMEN

Delivering ‘Game Changer’ Combination HIV Prevention Interventions for Adolescent Girls and Young Women to promote epidemic control in South Africa by Young People Manager Colleen Wagner

ECONOMIC EMPOWERMENT FOR SEX WORKERS

Grow, Learn, Own: Empowering sex workers to reduce their HIV risk through economic empowerment programming in two districts of South Africa by Key Populations Manager, Leora Casey

NACOSA would like to thank the Global Fund for making these abstracts and our attendance at the conference possible.