Govt asked to fund expanded rollout of HIV prevention drug lenacapavir

___________________

HIV/AIDS stakeholders have called on the government to allocate funds to procure more doses of lenacapavir to cover at least 1.5 million people who need it.

Lenacapavir is a long-acting HIV prevention injectable drug that is given twice a year to prevent people at risk from acquiring HIV.

“We want to see the government invest more money in buying lenacapavir if we are going to make effective use of it and realise its impact in denting new HIV infections,” said the head of HIV prevention and control at Uganda AIDS Commission (UAC), Dr Daniel Byamukama.

Highlighting the urgent need for lenacapavir, Dr Byamukama further noted that the country has launched and rolled out the twice-yearly HIV injectable drug with only 19,000 doses against the 37,000 new HIV infections that the country recorded last year. This implies that Uganda requires more than 1.5 million doses.

“Now that we have launched with only 19,000 doses that were procured by donors, it means we need money to procure more doses for our population, most of whom are helpless and are tired,” he noted.

According to Dr Byamukama, the first step will be to go to Parliament to request allocation of funds to procure lenacapavir, an HIV prevention injectable drug that is convenient for the population.

He welcomed the intervention, noting that it will go a long way in reducing the disproportionate burden of HIV infections among women and babies who are born infected with HIV.

According to the 2025 National HIV Estimates report, of the 1.5 million Ugandans living with HIV, about 930,000 are girls and women, compared to 570,000 boys and men. The same report shows that of the 14,000 new infections among young people aged 15 to 24 last year, nearly 70 percent were adolescent girls and young women. By contrast, only 17 percent of new infections were among boys and uncircumcised men engaging in unsafe sexual practices.

Uganda reduced new HIV infections to 37,000 in 2024, yet 4,700 babies were still born with the virus, according to the National HIV Estimates of 2025. UNAIDS data shows that 50 percent (2,350) of the 4,700 babies born infected with HIV in 2024 were exposed during late pregnancy.

UNAIDS country director Jacqueline Makokha agreed, noting that the rollout of lenacapavir expands the range of prevention options available.

Makokha said the launch of lenacapavir, an HIV prevention injectable drug, is timely given that Uganda registers about 100 new infections per day, with a significant proportion among young girls and women.

She said lenacapavir provides an alternative for those who do not prefer oral PrEP, the dapivirine ring or condoms.

Makokha added that UNAIDS continues to support countries and communities to align policies to ensure access, affordability and availability of lenacapavir, alongside other innovations.

She further noted that countries are being encouraged to invest domestic resources in such technologies to reach more people and reduce the burden of the epidemic.

Lenacapavir has already been launched in several African countries, including Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Mozambique, Nigeria, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

George Tamale from the Global Fund Board and vice chairperson of the Programme Oversight Committee said the launch presents an opportunity to call on the government to strengthen domestic investment in health and scale up new technologies such as lenacapavir.

Tamale noted that sustained financing will be critical to ensure that these long-term interventions are equitably accessed and sustainably delivered across the country.

A week ago on April 14, the United States announced with the Global Fund and Gilead Sciences their commitment to reaching three million people in high-burden countries with lenacapavir by 2028.

The United States Deputy Chief of Mission, Mikael Cleverley, said the US government and Global Fund, in collaboration with the Ministry of Health, are providing doses to place approximately 46,000 people on lenacapavir in Uganda in 2026.

Additional doses will be available next year and beyond as global supply chain conditions improve. “Uganda's selection as a launch country is no accident, no coincidence; it reflects strong national leadership and robust service delivery systems,” Cleverley said.

This was during the recent national rollout and launch of lenacapavir at Lira Regional Referral Hospital on April 17, 2026.

The launch was presided over by the Minister of Health, Dr Jane Ruth Aceng, who described the injectable as a game changer in Uganda’s HIV prevention strategy.

Dr Aceng advised the public not to neglect the basics of prevention, which remain central to the combination HIV prevention strategy.

She noted that the ABC strategy has guided the country for many years.

“For the young people, please abstain until you are ready for marriage; those who are married should remain faithful to their partner, and those who are sexually active and have more than one partner should use a condom correctly and consistently to avoid the spread of HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases," Dr Aceng said.

She further noted that the lenacapavir milestone is a result of strong leadership and commitment by the government under the National Resistance Movement led by President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni.

Dr Herbert Kadama, the national PrEP coordinator at the Ministry of Health, said the launch in Lira signals the beginning of a nationwide rollout and a deliberate effort to decentralise HIV prevention services.

Dr Kadama said Lira was selected partly due to its relatively high HIV prevalence, estimated at about 10 percent compared to the national prevalence of 4.9 percent.

“This is the official rollout of Lenacapavir, which offers protection through just two injections a year. It is a major shift in prevention because it reduces the burden of daily medication,” he noted.

The rollout of lenacapavir will be phased, prioritising high-risk populations in high-burden districts. The Ministry of Health has completed training in 103 health facilities across the country, which will begin phase one implementation this April. By December 2026, a total of 300 health facilities are expected to provide lenacapavir for PrEP, Dr Aceng said.

Who is benefiting

The injection is free, with recipients only covering transport to health facilities. These include:

• Adolescent girls and young women aged between 15 and 24.
• Pregnant and breastfeeding mothers.
• Female sex workers and their clients who can be reached through moonlight clinics conducted at night in clubs and brothels.
• Other high-risk groups such as fishermen, long-distance truck drivers and individuals in multiple sexual relationships.