CFK Africa, an international nonprofit working to improve public health and economic prosperity in informal settlements in Kenya, has hailed the Kenyan government for approving Dapivirine Vaginal Ring (DPV-VR), a long-acting HIV prevention product.
CFK Africa stated that new treatments and ongoing prevention efforts, when combined with community outreach initiatives, could lead to significant progress in the fight against the HIV epidemic in Africa.
Kenya’s Ministry of Health recently approved DPV-VR, which the World Health Organization recommends for women who are at substantial risk of contracting the virus.
Meanwhile, an injectable version of the PrEP HIV prevention drug will be expanding in other parts of Africa through American aid programmes.
“These newer preventative treatments have the potential to help reduce the HIV rate in Kenya and other countries even more significantly,” CFK Africa executive director Jeffrey Okoro said “When paired with our existing efforts at raising awareness and expanding health care, we may be on the cusp of a new era in HIV prevention in Africa.”
Since 2007, CFK Africa has provided HIV testing and treatment at its Tabitha Medical Clinic, which serves 35,000 patients each year in Kibera, one of the largest informal settlements in Africa on the outskirts of Nairobi. Patients who test positive for HIV receive anti-retroviral therapy at the clinic, with 3,578 patients receiving treatment over the past five years. Over 1,000 patients currently receive treatment.
Key partners in CFK Africa’s HIV prevention and treatment efforts are Ciheb-Kenya, a non-governmental organization that supports policy and guideline development, planning and coordinating HIV response at the national and county levels, and implementing HIV services at the facility level, and the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which co-hosts one of the largest infectious disease surveillance platforms globally in an informal settlement at CFK Africa’s medical clinic.
CFK Africa established the first comprehensive Youth Friendly Services Centre in Kibera in 2019. The center provides health services such as HIV testing, family planning consultations, psychological counseling and education about sexual and reproductive health, specifically for youth. Currently, the center serves approximately 750 youth each year and offers vital HIV/AIDS testing and counseling services.
The ongoing stigma surrounding sexual activity and HIV often prevents young people from seeking health services, obtaining contraceptives, and asking important questions. To address this issue, CFK Africa conducts outreach activities outside of its healthcare facilities to help reduce stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV.
These and other government and non-governmental programs have had an effect, as HIV prevalence among Kenyans aged 15-49 reduced by 50 percent from 2010 to 2019.
“We always knew that the fight against HIV would take years, if not decades, but we are seeing the fruits of those efforts already, and we know that the coming years will bring even more success if we take advantage of these new options,” he concluded.
