Agency
An initial consignment of 19, 200 doses of Lenacapivir, a six-monthly HIV prevention injection drug, has arrived in Uganda, marking a major milestone in the country’s HIV prevention efforts.
The arrival of the consignment donated by the Global Fund follows approval of the drug for use in the country by the National Drug Authority (NDA) in January.
Lenacapavir demonstrated high effectiveness as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) in clinical trials conducted among adolescent girls and young women in Uganda and South Africa.
Following these results, Uganda was earmarked to receive a donation worth USD 1.1 million from the Global Fund this month, placing the country among the first beneficiaries of donated doses.
The Ministry of Health has revealed they plan to start distribution in high-burden and high-incidence districts next month, in March.
However, while these plans are underway, activists have raised concerns about potential access challenges.
Earlier interviews by Mega Fm quoted Kuraish Mubiru, the Executive Director of Uganda Young Positives, who warned that the entire donation by the Global Fund would cover only about 10,000 doses, far below the country’s needs, given that Uganda records up to 1,000 new HIV infections every week.
