Zimbabwe continues to be shining beacon in HIV prevention
Pretty Manyewe
Zimbabwe has become the first county in Africa to approve the use of the long-acting injectable cabotegravir as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV prevention.
The World Health Organisation announced through a statement.
The new PrEP is expected to be part of the comprehensive HIV prevention approaches.
The conducted two large studies proved that the CAB-LA injections if administered every 2 months were safe, well-tolerated, and highly effective in reducing the risk of HIV acquisition among men who have sex with men and transgender women and among cisgender women.
The Government of Zimbabwe answered the call from WHO urging countries to consider this effective prevention option.
WHO released comprehensive guidelines and highlighted the need for implementation science to support its introduction.
Upon the announcement of the news, there has been considerable interest from Zimbabwean communities in this new effective HIV prevention option.
Ms Nyasha Sithole, Development Agenda for Girls and Women in Africa Network (DAWA), Zimbabwe, spoke on the news saying, “Accelerating HIV prevention for girls and young women requires an expansion on choices available. I am excited and proud to know that my own country Zimbabwe has approved the use of CAB-LA. This will contribute to our basket of HIV prevention tools that work for us as girls and women in Zimbabwe.”
According to studies, CAB-LA is the third PrEP product recommended by WHO for HIV prevention.
Tenofovir-based oral PrEP was recommended in 2015 and the dapivirine vaginal ring, another long-acting product, in 2021. The availability of these three products provides increased choices for HIV prevention.
Currently, the new injection has only been approved in USA by US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA). Zimbabwe is making history becoming the first country in Africa and first low- and middle-income country to do so.
WHO has declared unconditional support to countries across the globe to design and develop programmes and campaigns so that CAB-LA can be implemented, safely and effectively, for greatest impact.
Since the access to CAB-LA currently remains a challenge globally and making CAB-LA available at an affordable price in low- and middle-income countries is critical, the regulatory approval step taken by Zimbabwe is one of many crucial steps to be taken in the mandate of making the drug available to individuals in low and middle income countries.
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