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Groundbreaking conferences and think-tanks in the ever-widening field of HIV/AIDS are happening around the world all the time. Read on for a selection of some of the major conferences, forums and other HIV/AIDS-related events taking place. Upcoming conferences (non-SABCOHA) and events2nd TB Conference 1 - 4 June 2010 The theme for the conference, to be held at the ICC in Durban, is Forging Strategic Partnerships to fight TB and HIV. Click here to access the conference website: Past eventsThe 5th Social Aspects of HIV/AIDS Research Alliance Conference 30 Nov - 3 Dec 2009 The SAHARA conference to be held in Johannesburg had a very specific focus, the social aspects of HIV – that is the social and cultural aspects of the epidemic (as opposed to the bio-medical ones). An important feature of the conference is its strong Africa focus. Click here for more information: World Aids Day 1 December 2009 Under the theme “I am responsible, We are responsible, South Africa is taking responsibility”, the 2009 World AIDS Day heralds a new era in the country’s collective effort in the response to HIV and AIDS. The theme encourages everyone in South Africa from individuals, communities, businesses and government to take personal and collective responsibility to stop new HIV infections, provide care and support to those living with HIV and to ensure access to treatment for all people in need.
Click here to view a presentation: Related articles: Finally, A World Aids Day to remember
Sanac Plenary Meeting 25 November 2009 Senior executives from the private sector and government leaders met to discuss the way forward in tackling the HIV/AIDS epidemic, at a South African National Aids Council (SANAC) plenary meeting. Present at the meeting was Deputy President Kgalema Motlanthe; Minister of Health Dr Aaron Motsoaledi; Deputy Minister of Basic Education Enver Surty; and the chief executive of SANAC, Dr Nono Simelela; among others. Click here for more informaion: HSRC Seminar Series - HIV prevention: Where is the evidence of interventions that work? 23 November 2009 There have been remarkable advances in the molecular biology of HIV and major therapeutic discoveries in the past 28 years of the epidemic and attention to treatment access has undoubtedly increased in recent years. However, for every patient who initiated ART in 2006, six other individuals became infected with HIV Effective HIV prevention is, therefore, paramount. In the absence of a drastic reduction in the number of new infections, national effort for universal access to treatment will be in serious jeopardy, and many more people may die as a result of preventable HIV infections. Prevention efforts should be based on the best available epidemiological and social science evidence . 2009 SWHAP Annual Conference: Achieving Behavioural Change 15-16 October 2009 Atlas Copco South Africa won the Swedish Workplace HIV and AIDS Programme (SWHAP) Achievement Award for the best workplace programme at the 2009 Annual Conference gala dinner held on Thursday 15 October in Johannesburg, The SWHAP is jointly initiated and implemented by the International Council of Swedish Industry and the Swedish Industrial and Metalworkers' Union. The SWHAP Achievement Award was introduced 2008 to encourage and reward successful and innovative workplace initiatives. The aim is to further commitment at the workplace level to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS and alleviate the effects of the HIV pandemic. The SWHAP hopes to inspire companies to amplify their efforts to become spearheads in responding HIV and AIDS. Since start 2004 more than 50 workplaces have been involved in SWHAP. It currently operates in Botswana, Kenya, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. It is co-financed by Swedish Sida. Click here to read more:
Global Business Coalition TB Technical Workshop October 15, 2009 (Johannesburg, South Africa) The third in a series of three workshops in South Africa to increase the quality of workplace TB programs among large companies and to help them extend TB programs to small and medium enterprises.
Click here to view the GBC website:
Click here to view the report: Global Business Coalition: Increasing Corporate Engagement on Tuberculosis (Workshop #2: Case Studies and Partner Perspectives) 13 August 2009
Click here for more information: Click here to view the GBC website:
19-22 July 2009 As the fifth conference in the HIV Pathogenesis, Treatment and Prevention series, IAS 2009 features reports on the latest developments in the areas of basic, clinical and prevention science. For more information Click here to acess the IAC conference website: Related articles IAC Update: Test and treat to wipe out AIDS IAC Update: New lease for PMTCT Changes afoot for US global AIDS policy IAC Update: Scientific community urged to become activists HIV/AIDS Implementer's Meeting 10-14 June 2009 The HIV/AIDS Implementers' Meeting together program implementers shared best practices and lessons learned in the fight against global AIDS. It will be held in Windhoek, Namibia. It is the only meeting of its kind focused specifically on implementation. The objectives of the 2009 HIV/AIDS Implementers' Meeting were to: Widely disseminate, in real time, best practices and lessons learned during the implementation of multi-sectoral HIV/AIDS programs with a focus on: Optimizing the Impact of Prevention, Care and Treatment Programs Enhancing Program Quality Promoting Coordination Among Partners Encouraging Innovative Responses Catalyze an open dialogue about future directions of HIV/AIDS programs with a strong emphasis on implementation Directly impact HIV/AIDS program implementation in the upcoming year with the goal of building a sustainable response. Click here for more information:
Increasing Corporate Engagement on Tuberculosis 14 May 2009 The Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria convened the first in a series of three workshops on workplace tuberculosis programs to be held in 2009. Sponsored by The Eli Lilly MDR-TB partnership, the workshop was convened by GBC in collaboration with the following partner organizations:
Click here to view the Arum presentation:
Click here to view the report of the workshop: Toolkits World Economic Forum's Global Health Initiative (GHI) and the Lilly MDR-TB Partnership launched a new toolkit that aims in June 2008 to boost the involvement of South African companies in tackling the TB crisis. The announcement comes as South Africa faces an emerging threat of TB/HIV co-infections and fatal drug-resistant strains of the disease. Click here for a summary of the toolkit: Read more: New TB toolkit launched at Cape Town forum Click here to access SABCOHA's TB page
Fourth SA AIDS Conference - Scaling up for success to reduce the AIDS burden (31 March to 3 April 2009) The fourth SA AIDS Conference was held in Durban and signalled a new onslaught on the AIDS epidemic in Southern Africa. The theme, Scaling up for Success, is aimed at escalating the combined knowledge and experiences from the region to make a significant impact on the prevalence of AIDS. The southern region of Africa has been hit hardest by the HIV epidemic. For the first time, the fourth SA AIDS Conference has been extended beyond South Africa's borders to encourage participation and involvement from people in all countries in Southern Africa. It is the only event that brings together scientists, researchers, health care professionals, civil society leaders and ordinary citizens to share their knowledge and experience in a concerted effort to reduce the effects of AIDS in the region. The six tracks covered were:
Related articles: SA AIDS programme short of R1-billion Hogan addresses concerns raised at Aids Conference South Africa/Zimbabwe: Cross-border healthcare response needed Funding shortfall threatens treatment programme New ideas at 4th International AIDS conference See also PlusNews for further information Southern African HIV Clinicians' Society AGM The Southern African HIV Clinicians' Society's 2008 annual general meeting (AGM) is took place in Johannesburg on Thursday, 27 November 2008 at 6pm. AIDS Accountability International's HIV/AIDS Country Scorecard launch The AIDS Accountability International's HIV/AIDS Country Scorecard was launched on 28 November 2008 in Pretoria. AIDS Accountability International (AAI) was established to increase accountability and inspire bolder leadership in the response to the AIDS epidemic. It does this by rating and comparing the degree to which public, private and civil society actors are fulfilling the formal agreements they have made to respond to the epidemic. For a preview of the HIV/AIDS Country Scorecard, click here. The full country rating list and methodology will be presented on World AIDS Day. Gauteng AIDS Summit 2008 (23 - 24 October 2008) The Gauteng AIDS Council held the Gauteng AIDS Summit for 2008, Making the national strategic plan on HIV and AIDS for 2007 to 2011 work for local communities, was held on 23 and 24 October at the Birchwood Executive Hotel and Conference Centre. It was convened jointly by the department of health's Multi-Sectoral AIDS Unit and local government. The programme included addresses by the MEC for health, Brain Hlongwa, and the MEC for local government, Dorothy Qedani Mahlangu. It was attended by representatives of government, civil society and other stakeholders and aimed to facilitate effective implementation of the National Strategic Plan on HIV and AIDS for 2007 to 2011 in local communities within Gauteng Province; effectively implement the multi-sectoral AIDS response at local level; follow up on recommendations of previous AIDS conferences; and mainstream HIV and AIDS into service delivery. Sessions include reducing the impact on affected families, community and business partnership projects, capacity building in civil society, and workplace responses to HIV. AC3 NGO Conference (23 - 24 October 2008) The valuable work that NGOs deliver in communities all over South Africa is often taken for granted. NGOs face enormous challenges at various levels of service delivery - and often succeed against all odds. But with rising costs and a growing number of people that need help, even the more successful NGOs are struggling to survive. The NGO Conference at the CSIR in Pretoria focused on guiding NGOs working in the HIV/AIDS field by providing information and tools to improve their ability to survive and thrive. Presentations covered several topics: Managing human and financial resources; governance and legal matters; mobilising communities; learning from others' mistakes and successes; donor relations; and reporting systems to meet donor requirements. For more information about the conference, visit the NGO Conference website.
2008 Phillip Tobias Lecture Series - 27 years of responding to HIV/AIDS (17 September 2008) Minister of Science and Technology Mosibudi Mangena hosted the 2008 Phillip Tobias Lecture Series at the Sandton Convention Centre in Johannesburg. Professor Malegapuru Makgoba, the vice-chancellor and principle of the University of KwaZulu-Natal, presented "27 years of responding to HIV/AIDS: Africa's lost opportunities and the picture onwards". The Phillip Tobias Lecture Series honours Professor Tobias' contribution to the sciences of palaeo-anthropology and genetics through anatomical studies, and is presented biannually by the Department of Science and Technology. This year's award acknowledged the valuable contribution that Professor Makgoba had made as an intellectual and scientist to South Africa's science systems.
Experiences, Responses and Challenges: Nutrition, HIV and AIDS (2-3 July 2008) This conference took place on 2 and 3 July 2008 at the Apollo Hotel, in Randburg, Johannesburg. Despite the existence of conclusive scientific evidence on the role of nutrition in the fight against HIV and AIDS, practical application of this evidence is still patchy. Responses by the government, civil society, the private sector and communities to mitigate the effects of these interactions on livelihoods are broad, however, and coping strategies and resilience to the pandemic remain a challenge. It is against this backdrop that the conference was convened. It aimed to create a platform where various stakeholders could share knowledge gained from their experiences in responding to nutrition issues within the context of HIV and AIDS. The conference brought together experts from international organisations such as RENEWAL, governments, NGOs, the private sector and persons living with HIV to share their work, experiences and policy commitments. For more information, click here: nutrition_conference
TB Conference (1-4 July, ICC, Durban) The TB Conference was held at the International Convention Centre in Durban, South Africa, from 1 to 4 July 2008. It looked at the latest research results, community activities and advancements in the fields of basic science, clinical, epidemiological and operational research, patient and civil society mobilisation and advocacy. Second Wits HIV/AIDS in the Workplace Research Symposium 29-30 May 2008 The Wits Business School hosted the 2nd Wits HIV/AIDS in the Workplace Research Symposium on the 29th and 30th of May 2008. With 5.5 million people living with HIV/AIDS in South Africa alone, the continued challenges that HIV/AIDS presents to African economies and households, together with the accompanying advances made in workplace responses, created an uncontested rationale for a second Symposium. Just as the first 2004 Symposium emphasized research, the 2008 event focused on the presentation of rigorous, applied social research. This was a deliberate contrast to the commercial events attached to HIV/AIDS in the workplace that are commonly organised by the South African private sector. The content of the Symposium was underpinned by over 25 original research papers authored by a cadre of emerging young researchers, as well as established professionals and academics. Click here to read more: hiv_symposium_overview_08 Click here to access the documents on the WBS website:
Pan African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (PABC) Conference (20-22 May) Delegates from across Africa formally approved the registration of the Pan African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (PABC), and also appointed the first interim board of directors at a conference held in Kyalami, Johannesburg. Click here to access the PABC website: The Nelson Mandela Metro Business Coalition Against HIV/AIDS Candlelight Memorial (16 May 2008) The Nelson Mandela Metro Business Coalition Against HIV/AIDS (NMMBCAA) invited management, HIV/AIDS programme co-ordinators and peer educators of our partners in business, private, local and provincial government sectors to the AIDS Candlelight Memorial 2008, on 16 May. The 25th anniversary International AIDS Candlelight Memorial, a programme of the Global Health Council, was designed to honour the memory of all those who have been affected by the AIDS pandemic. It was also an opportunity to educate people about HIV/AIDS, influence local and national policy makers, and create a common dialogue about prevention, care and treatment of the disease. "Never give up, never forget" was this year's theme. The NMMBCAA demonstrates support for those living with HIV and AIDS, acknowledges that we are all affected by the disease, and honours the memory of those lost to this disease. The memorial was held at Missionvale Care Centre, 1 Tromp Road, Missionvale, Port Elizabeth, on 16 May 2008, from 9am to 11am. The guest speakers were Dr Alex Govender and Odwa Mtati. Sister Ethel Normoyle gave a message of hope. Photographs can be seen on the image gallery. Access to health care in Africa - changing the paradigm for access and quality - April 16-18, 2008 Cape Town, South Africa ARV Access for Africa (AA4A), a subsidiary of IDA Solutions in the Netherlands held a symposium/master class/seminar aimed at examining and solving some of the current challenges to the reliable supply, quality of care and effective use of HIV/AIDS and related medicines and diagnostics, and capacity development. The main challenges include quality assurance of medicines, the supply chain itself, including selection, procurement, pricing, licensing, medicines for children, the actual care which patients receive and the lack of human and other resource capacity to meet them. Click here to view the document: access_to_healthcare_symposium_april_20082 2007 Conferences (already held in South Africa)Click here to view information of conferences already held in 2007 International conferencesHIV/AIDS Conferences Worldwide: Upcoming events in HIV/AIDS, immunology and related fields is continually updated by Conference Alerts. Click here to go to the updated list of events on the conference website. 2008 Conferences held in South Africa |
GBC Workshop Programme