The GlobalAIDS ‘In Danger’ progress report published in July 2022 warned that a faltering HIV response is placing us on a trajectory to miss the 2030 targets.

We can blame this on broadening inequity and shrinking resources, which is amplified by other disease and humanitarian crises like the COVID pandemic and the war in Ukraine.

New infections in 2022 were three times more than the target, with marginalised, vulnerable and stigmatised populations still bearing the brunt of the epidemic.  The annual decrease of global new infections from 2020 to 2021 was only 3,6% with some countries experiencing a sharp rise in new HIV infections.

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This regression brings political will into question.

Countries that have strong community-led responses [pg 200], enabling legal and policy environments [pg 150] and more equitable delivery of services [pg 90], have been more resilient.

But political will is not something  that can be solved overnight…

…or by oneself

…or without self-awareness

…or with short term technical assistance

…or by publishing a new guideline.

These are things that require critical reflection, contextual understanding, complex solutioning, multi-sectoral engagements and high levels of ownership and accountability of countries and regions of their HIV prevention response.

These are things that we at the South-South HIV Prevention Learning Network aim to support our 15 countries with. We encourage:

Critical reflection:

countries entering into the SSLN are required to first complete a prevention self-assessment using a standardised tool. This is done in a consultative manner against a global blueprint of promising practice and validated by a national technical working group. This process in and of itself opens up a trusted platform for critical reflection and a holistic look into the status of country programmes.

Contextual understanding:

Countries in the Network are all African and share common realities, successes and challenges in implementing their HIV prevention programmes. Thus, SSLN sharing and joint-solutioning with other countries is done so with greater equality and trust than some of the more traditional North-South approaches.

Complex solutioning:

‍ SSLN layers learning activities to reinforce cross-country learning and engagement with peers from across the network. The timing of shared learning and joint problem solving is also overlaid with other national priorities such as NFM4 or COP planning in order to better link learning plans with emerging resources.

Multi-sectoral engagement:

‍Only through multisectoral engagement and encouragement of different views and perspectives and realities, can inequalities that drive pandemics be narrowed. Our Network members represent a varied group of nominated Country Champions that come to the table with equally weighted voices and equal opportunities provided to them.  

High level ownership and accountability:

The premise of ‘by the South for the South’ requires country buy-in and ownership. Through the SSLN, we have managed to place Country Champions at the centre of every design and implementation consideration as well on the advisory board of the programme. This ensures that the SSLN remains responsive and flexible to the needs of countries and remains a Network whose roots are planted in ‘the South’.

This Learning Network is a game-changer in HIV prevention in our region, where we can safely learn from one another in a relatable and critical way. We are building each other up and building an army of HIV prevention experts and leaders in Africa for Africa” SSLN Champion, East Africa

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