The Journal of the International AIDS Society (JIAS) is delighted to let you know about the launch of a supplement, titled “PEP in Africa: prospects, opportunities and challenges”. It was guest edited by Euphemia L. Sibanda (Centre for Sexual Health and HIV Research, Zimbabwe), Julie Fox (King’s College London, UK) and Peter Godfrey-Faussett (London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, UK).
Despite progress, global HIV incidence remains high, with 1.2 million acquisitions in 2023, far exceeding the UNAIDS targets. While treatment and pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) have helped avert new acquisitions, implementation of post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) has remained limited despite its proven efficacy. This has mainly been due to centralized PEP provision, its restricted use for occupational and sexual violence exposures, and limited awareness. The World Health Organization’s 2024 guidelines advocate for community-based PEP distribution and task sharing to improve PEP uptake; however, real-world data and scientific literature on implementation approaches remain scarce, particularly in Africa.
This supplement features multidisciplinary research designed to improve the rollout of PEP in Africa. The articles underline the importance of effective implementation strategies in expanding PEP availability and uptake. They show how innovative research in diverse African settings is piloting ways to identify who would benefit most from PEP and effective ways to deliver it. As the Guest Editors point out, “Increasing the choice of options for HIV prevention is essential. New products, such as a pill or injection that could be taken just once after an exposure, could make a big difference to the ease of delivery of PEP. Ongoing research will simplify PEP, improve access and help to define the opportunities for PEP within the overall HIV prevention strategy.”
The content of the supplement will also be featured at an event organized by Genesis Analytics with funding from the Gates Foundation. Join the hybrid event for free on Wednesday, 16 July, 15:00-16:30 CAT at Radisson Blu Hotel & Convention Centre, Kigali, Rwanda (register in person or virtually).
Please help us inform others about this important topic by promoting and sharing this supplement across your networks.
This supplement was organized by Genesis Analytics and supported with funding from the Gates Foundation. The content of this supplement is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of Genesis Analytics and/or the Gates Foundation.
For enquiries or further information, please contact editorial@jiasociety.org
The Journal of the International AIDS Society is an open-access, peer-reviewed journal, which publishes HIV-related research from various disciplines and particularly encourages submissions in implementation sciences.
