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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 and events in South AfricaSouthern African HIV Clinicians' Society AGM The Southern African HIV Clinicians' Society's 2008 annual general meeting (AGM) is taking place at the Pharmaceutical Society of South Africa, Glenhove Conferencing Centre, 52 Glenhove Road, Houghton, Johannesburg on Thursday, 27 November 2008 at 6pm. The president, Dr Francois Venter, will present his address. The annual financial statement for the financial year ended 28 February 2008 will also be presented. A non-voting AGM, it will be followed by a light finger supper, and the Johannesburg branch meeting. This meeting will be in held in honour of the late Prof Rueben Sher, and Prof Des Martin will present the Prof Rueben Sher Memorial Lecture. The society is the South African Medical Association's largest special interest group with over 15 000 members. During the last year, the society has:
In order to ensure receipt of all the society's services, please make sure that your annual fees are paid and that the society database reflects your latest contact details. If not, please email the database manager, Patrick Solan, at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it . AIDS Accountability International's HIV/AIDS Country Scorecard launch The AIDS Accountability International's HIV/AIDS Country Scorecard will be 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. The scorecard development has been lead by a team of internationally recognised scientists and in consultation with a broad range of stakeholders worldwide, including civil society organisations. It measures the degree to which countries are fulfilling the commitments they have made in the UNGASS 2001 declaration.
Venue: HSRC; Forum 150, 134 Pretorius Street, Pretoria, South Africa Confirm your attendance by email to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or by phone to Marisa da Silva on +46 700 46 14, no later than 21 November 2008. For the full invitation, click here. 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. Fourth SA AIDS Conference - Scaling up for success to reduce the AIDS burden The fourth SA AIDS Conference that will be held in Durban from 31 March to 3 April 2009 will signal 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. Numerous opportunities for participation exist: whether it is as a presenter in any of the six tracks that cover diverse aspects of HIV and AIDS, or as a participant who wants to gather information that can help your community or organisation to win the fight against AIDS. The six tracks will cover:
Important dates 31 October 2008 is the closing date for:
Register now to benefit from the reduced early registration fee of R2 800, including VAT. The regular registration fee after 31 October is R3 600, including VAT. Go to the SA AIDS Conference website for more information about the tracks, abstract submission, and to register online, or phone 0861 115 182 (local call) or +27 (0) 12 460 8998 (international call) for more information. Past eventsGauteng 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. 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 AfricaAccess 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 held in South AfricaRe-energizing the response to HIV and AIDS 15 and 16 November 2007 Held by the the Multi Sectoral Aids Unit of the Gauteng AIDS Council.
26 October 2007 Greenpath Institute (Pty) Ltd, hosted HIV/AIDS Peer Educators in the Workplace HIV/AIDS and TB Peer Educators Seminar. The purpose of the seminar was to further empower workplace peer educators through sharing best practices and strategies of managing HIV in the workplace. For more information Please contact Lebogang Moalusi on (011) 838 4374 OR Lerato Mataboge on 011838 8994/5. Click on file to view the invitation:workplace_hiv_and_aids_peer_educators_seminar_2
Cellphone for HIV project 25 Sept (Johannesburg)/28 Sept (Cape Town) Cell-Life is a not-for-profit company developing technical systems in the fight against HIV. We are starting a project to use cellphones as a channel for information & communications services to potentially millions of people infected or affected by HIV. About 3 out of every 4 youth and adults in the country has a cellphone (around 75%). While many companies make money offering ringtones and downloadable picture of popstars, cellphones are not much used to provide services to millions of people impacted by HIV. This project aims to link with organisations in the sector to provide a mass channel to receive information on HIV, communicate with others to overcome stigma, offer counseling and other services, support groups active in the sector and promote the voices of people living with HIV/AIDS. We will work to make services ‘free at the point of use’, using technology that is widely available, and in a range of South African languages. This project is supported by the Vodacom Foundation and the RAITH Foundation. The Pan African Health Congress 2007 September 2007 The conference featured health officials from around the continent as they discuss issues such as ARV access, Uganda's HIV and AIDS projects, and malaria control. The conference seeks to facilitate networking between ministries, NGOs, procurement and funding agencies, and the local and global private sectors. Click here to go to their website: Managing TB in the Community and the Workplace Cause of deaths among South Africans August 2007 StatsSA's 2007 report on causes of death among South Africans, issued on 14 June 2007, shows that tuberculosis (TB) was the leading reported cause of death in 2005. The Department of Health, USAID and the University Research Corporation (URC) aimed to unpack what lies behind the alarming statistics and to discuss how local government and the private sector can support initiatives to control TB - especially in the context of HIV and AIDS. Workplace HIV and AIDS programmes present an opportunity to integrate HIV and AIDS with TB programmes within the private sector - a strategy that is advocated by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the National TB Control Programme.
Knowing our status and beyond : Workplace VCT and HIV & AIDS management A Swedish Workplace HIV/AIDS Programme (SWHAP) conference 5 & 6 July 2007 Conference Purpose:
Click here to view the invitation: South African Bureau of Standards SANS 16001:2007, HIV and AIDS: Management Systems – General Requirements 18 July 2007
“This standard was developed to assist, encourage and support organizations to Click on the file to view the invitation: launch_sans_160011 Related articles: New standard for HIV/AIDS programmes
3rd South African AIDS Conference, 5 - 8 June 2007 Conference Theme: Building Consensus on prevention, treatment and care. HIV/AIDS continues to engender disagreement among key stakeholders in South Africa who are otherwise fully committed to tackling the epidemic. The divisions can be attributed to a lack of a common understanding of the nature and meaning of research evidence that moreover, is evolving at a rapid rate at local, national and global levels. One way to deal with these differences in perceptions is to provide opportunities and forums where issues of contention can be discussed. The 2007 AIDS conference aims to serve as a platform for deliberations on the key contentious issues relating to prevention, treatment and care. In particular, the conference will highlight state-of-the-art developments in prevention technologies; new approaches to prevention; the long-term impact of highly active antiretroviral therapy on incidence, prevalence, morbidity and mortality; the role of nutrition in HIV/AIDS; and the role of research into the use of complimentary and traditional medicines in HIV/AIDS. Click here to view the conference website:
Click here for information on the SABCOHA Satellite Session Program on 6 June:
Deputy President Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Acting Minister of Health, Mr Jeff Radebe, together with a government delegation including cabinet ministers who are members of the South African National AIDS Council (SANAC) and their senior government officials participated in a two day consultative conference on the National Strategic Plan on HIV and AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infections (NSP 2007-2011). The conference was also be attended by about 500 representatives from various stakeholders in the area of HIV and AIDS.
This conference is a culmination of intense consultative work which characterised an extensive and inclusive process on the review of the 2000-2005 plan, and the development of an updated comprehensive plan on HIV and AIDS and STI for 2007-2011 for the country.
A generation of orphaned children is on the increase: Is South Africa coping?
Constitution Hill in partnership with CSVR, Jala Tsebo Seminar series presented the UNICEF report on the increase of orphans and child headed families in South Africa. The estimated number of orphans presently stands at more than 2 million with projected imminent increases to reach 5.7 million by 2015, to be held on the 26th February 2007 at 14h00 – 17h00 at the Slovo Court Yard at Constitution Hill, parking will be at the Super basement Precinct road Level C.
Leading international business conference organisers, IQPC (international Quality and Productivity Centre), hosted the Third Annual Conference on HIV/AIDS: The impact on business. The four-day conference was held in Johannesburg. Endorsed by SABCOHA, the conference was addressed by key players in the field. January 2007: UNFPA Workshops on Comprehensive Condom Programming (CCP) UNFPA organized two back-to-back workshops on Comprehensive Condom Programming (CCP) in Africa in Johannesburg, South Africa during the week of 29 January to 2 February 2007. The first workshop, 29-30 January, was internal and brought together staff from three UNFPA country offices (Malawi, Zambia and Zimbabwe), regional technical capacity in RH, RHCS, BCC and HIV from three UNFPA Country Support Team (CST) offices (Addis, Dakar and Harare), the Regional Directors Team (RDT) office in Johannesburg and UNFPA Headquarters in New York. The second workshop included UNFPA staff along with representatives of the development community and civil society partners working with SRH, HIV/AIDS and condom programming in Sub-Saharan Africa. The conference paper: |
