South Africa, Eswatini and Zambia on Monday began administering a groundbreaking HIV-prevention injection in the first public rollout of the drug in Africa, the continent with the highest HIV burden.
The twice-yearly injection, lenacapavir, has been shown to reduce the risk of HIV transmission by more than 99.9 percent, making it functionally similar to a highly effective vaccine.
In South Africa, where one in five adults lives with HIV, a Wits University research unit led the rollout as part of a Unitaid-funded initiative. “The first individuals have begun using lenacapavir for HIV prevention in South Africa … making it among the first real-world use of the 6-monthly injectable in low- and middle-income countries,” Unitaid said in a statement.
Unitaid did not disclose how many people received the first doses. The drug currently costs about $28,000 per person annually in the United States, with a broader national rollout expected in South Africa next year.
Zambia and Eswatini, which received 1,000 doses last month through a US programme, were also expected to launch their rollouts during World AIDS Day events on Monday.
Manufacturer Gilead Sciences has committed to supplying lenacapavir at no profit to two million people in high-burden countries over three years, but critics say this falls far short of global need and that the commercial price remains unaffordable.
Eastern and southern Africa account for about 52 percent of the 40.8 million people living with HIV worldwide, according to 2024 UNAIDS figures.
Generic versions of lenacapavir are expected from 2027 at around $40 per year in more than 100 countries, under agreements between Unitaid, the Gates Foundation and Indian pharmaceutical manufacturers.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) has been used for more than a decade to prevent HIV, but its dependence on daily pills has limited its global impact.
AFP
