From 30 October to 1 November, the South to South HIV Prevention Learning Network (SSLN) hosted a West and Central Africa (WCA) regional workshop in Lagos, Nigeria. This workshop brought together government stakeholders (MOH, NAC) in HIV prevention from the four member countries of this region. These were Côte d'Ivoire, the Republic of Congo, Ghana, and Nigeria.

Objective of the workshop:

The main objective of the sub-regional meeting was to promote collaboration, learning and optimisation of HIV prevention programmes in the countries concerned. To this end, the meeting provided an opportunity to review progress since the Pan-Prevention meeting, share best practices in developing sustainable prevention programs, validate technical assistance needs, and strengthen cooperation within the SSLN team. In addition, expanding SSLN activities to the sub-national level was explored to increase impact.

This workshop replicated SSLN's successful approach to bringing together diverse national stakeholders in an interactive, safe, and neutral "by the South, for the South" environment.

Workshop Details:

At the meeting, countries presented their progress and next steps in HIV prevention. They discussed cross-cutting themes such as domestic resource mobilisation, sustainability, removing legal and social barriers, and integrating HIV prevention into the health system. Countries also shared best practices in HIV prevention and assessed the impact of SSLN learning activities. Finally, HIV-related sites in Lagos were identified and visited. The meeting concluded with a feedback, learning and evaluation session.

This regional meeting strengthened collaboration among SSLN member countries and identified national priorities for HIV prevention, thus contributing to the effectiveness of prevention programmes in the region.