Johannesburg: Deputy Minister of Health, Dr. Joe Phaahla, has hailed long-acting injectables such as Lenacapavir as a game-changer poised to revolutionize HIV prevention, especially for adolescent girls, young women, and key populations. South Africa has secured approximately R520 million from the Global Fund to combat AIDS, tuberculosis (TB), and malaria, which will be used to procure the twice-yearly anti-HIV injection.
According to South African Government News Agency, Phaahla stated that modelling studies and expert guidance show that investing in combination HIV prevention strategies is the most cost-effective and efficient approach to reducing new infections and connecting individuals to comprehensive care. He emphasized the importance of these interventions in protecting gains and successes made in the HIV response and highlighted the expanded options for individuals at risk through prevention technologies like Lenacapavir.
He expressed gratitude to the Global Fund and other partners for selecting South Africa as one of the early adopter countries for Lenacapavir implementation as a pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) option. Lenacapavir tablets and injections can be used as PrEP to help reduce the risk of HIV infection in people who are HIV-negative.
The Deputy Minister was speaking at the 12th South African National AIDS Conference 2025, which brought together leaders, researchers, implementing partners, academics, and advocates from South Africa, the continent, and other countries to address the evolving landscape of combating HIV and its management. Phaahla noted the conference’s timing amid the realities of the United States’ funding withdrawals and commended the resilience and commitment of stakeholders to ensure minimal service-delivery interruptions for care recipients.
He highlighted the significance of technological advancements, including artificial intelligence (AI) and digital technologies, in strengthening the HIV response by accelerating prevention and treatment services, improving surveillance, and enhancing programme management. Phaahla emphasized that these technologies should be implemented with strong governance and privacy protections, and clarified that their use is intended to enhance the healthcare response rather than replace the human element.
Phaahla also addressed the co-infection of TB and HIV, which remains the leading cause of death for people living with HIV. In February, the department launched the ‘Close the Gap’ campaign to find 1.1 million clients who disengaged from treatment. Phaahla called for intensified efforts to reengage clients and ensure they start and stay on treatment.
The government has expanded TB preventive therapy, rolled out new rapid molecular diagnostics, and strengthened integrated service delivery to ensure no one is lost between TB and HIV programmes. Phaahla urged delegates to unite in purpose and empower individuals with tools, dignity, and opportunity, redefining health as a shared journey toward wellness, inclusion, and justice.
He concluded by stating that the future is being built now for current and future generations, with a commitment to ending AIDS, eliminating its co-travellers, and writing a new chapter of health equity in South Africa.