The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) is participating in various events as part of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). During the UNGA high-level week (September 21-27, 2021), PEPFAR will engage in discussions about the state of the global AIDS response, particularly in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic; dedicated efforts to address core HIV-related comorbidities, including cervical cancer for women living with HIV; the critical role of faith communities in supporting adolescents living with and affected by HIV; and the vital contributions of resilient and responsive health systems and workforces to HIV progress and broader pandemic preparedness and response.
Interested in joining the conversation? Tune in to the events listed below (where available) and follow PEPFAR’s latest updates on Twitter.
PEPFAR Op-ed: Our Global Plan To Fight HIV Has Been A Strategic Weapon Against COVID
Ahead of the 76th United Nations Assembly High-Level Week, PEPFAR published an op-ed by Dr. Angeli Achrekar that discusses PEPFAR’s tireless efforts during COVID-19 to protect and advance global HIV gains. Click here to read.
PEPFAR Activities at UNGA 2021
Monday, September 20:
Concordia Annual Summit: Health Workers and Health Systems
12:00 – 1:00 pm
Co-hosted by Concordia, Kyle House, and IntraHealth International Side Event
Tuesday, September 21:
Concordia Annual Summit: Go Further Partnership Event. Ending AIDS and Cervical Cancer
2:05 – 2:30 pm
Co-hosted by Concordia and the George W. Bush Presidential Center and sponsored by Merck
Watch a recording of this event on YouTube.
Wednesday, September 22:
UNGA COVID Summit hosted by the U.S. Government: Global COVID-19 Summit: Ending the Pandemic and Building Back Better Global Health Security”
11:00 am – 2:00 pm
The summit intends to mobilize world leaders to commit to a common set of targets and agree to take additional actions this fall in accordance with them in order to achieve the ultimate goal of ending the COVID-19 pandemic soonest – ideally in 2022. Every country in the world is invited to this event with the exception of Afghanistan, Belarus, Burma, Cuba, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Syria, and Venezuela. Leaders from a significant number of international organizations, philanthropic organizations, the non-governmental sector, and the private sector are also invited to the event.
UNGA 76 UNGA HLW side event co-hosted by UNAIDS/PEPFAR/Global Fund to fight AIDS, TB and Malaria: Partnering to get back on track to end AIDS by 2030
1:00 – 2:30 pm
The event will showcase the impact of almost two decades of UNAIDS/PEPFAR/Global Fund partnership and demonstrate how efforts to end AIDS have meaningfully contributed to the global effort that is underway to achieve the 2030 development goals, including efforts to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on efforts to end AIDS by 2030, with a renewed focus on ending inequalities. The Side Event will build on the political will gathered at the June UN High-Level Meeting on HIV and AIDS June and its Political Declaration.
Thursday, 23 September:
UNGA 76 UNGA HLW side event co-hosted by UNAIDS/PEPFAR partnership: ADOLESCENTS and HIV The role of faith communities in supporting adolescents’ prevention, treatment, care, and leadership in the HIV response
8:00 – 9:30 am
Panels will address the importance of accelerating the response to HIV, paying particular attention to adolescents and young people who represent a growing share of people living with HIV worldwide.
Friday, September 24, 2021:
The Global Fund and the Government of Italy HLW SE co-host: The Global Fund at 20: How We Changed the Story – 20 Years of Impact in the Fight against AIDS, TB, and Malaria.
9:00 – 10:15 am
Italy has the 2021 presidency of the G20. The goals of the side event are to; highlight the critical role of partners, supporters, donors, and the United Nations towards the tremendous impact achieved over two decades recognize the role of the Global Fund, in its 20th anniversary year in investing in formal and community health systems worldwide, to tell the Global Fund’s story and highlight what makes it a vital investment to drive global interest to a high-profile audience to pave the way for a successful 7th Replenishment campaign in 2022, and finally to sound the alarm that as the Global Fund marks two decades of impact, COVID-19 is severely threatening progress in the fight against HIV, TB, and malaria and that the response to the pandemic is lacking essential investment in low- and middle-income countries.
Development of the Next PEPFAR Strategy: Vision 2025
The next PEPFAR strategy, Vision 2025, is currently under development is informed by and closely coordinated with the Global AIDS Strategy 2021-2026, recently released by UNAIDS and adopted by countries worldwide, and the post-2022 Global Fund Strategy to optimize complementarity, value for money, and impact. The next PEPFAR Strategy will also support the international community’s efforts to put countries on track to reach the Sustainable Development Goal 3 target of ending the global AIDS epidemic as a public health threat by 2030, through the attainment of key milestones by 2025.