MEDIA ADVISORY: YOUNG WOMEN FROM 15 AFRICAN COUNTRIES TO MEET WITH WOMEN MINISTERS ON THEIR ROLE IN HIV RESPONSE
Date:
-- Girls aged 15 to 24 are three times more likely to acquire HIV than boys of the same age group in sub-Saharan Africa --
Dar Es Salaam, October 7 2022 – On October 11, International Day of the Girl Child, UN Women and the Government of the United Republic of Tanzania will co-host a high-level meeting to champion young women’s leadership with support from the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). The meeting will bring together emerging young women leaders from 15 African countries – where girls experience the highest risk of HIV infection – to meet with women ministers of health, education and gender equality. Countries include: Botswana, Cameroon, Cote d’Ivoire, Eswatini, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
This cross-generational, cross-sectoral women’s leadership meeting will culminate in a set of recommendations for policymakers to take forward to help reduce the incidence of HIV among adolescent girls and young women in their countries.
Additional partners include the African Women’s Leaders Network, the United Nations Tanzania, and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). Participants will join both in person and online.
|
WHO: |
Hon. President Samia Suluhu Hassan of the United Republic of Tanzania Hon. Donald J. Wright, United States Ambassador to Tanzania Ms. Sima Bahous, Executive Director, UN Women Ms. Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director, UNAIDS 90+ young women leaders aged 18-24 (joining online and in person) 35 women ministers and prominent leaders in the health, education and gender sectors
|
|
WHEN: |
October 11, 2022, from 9:00-10:20 a.m. |
|
WHERE: |
Serena Hotel, Dar Es Salaam, Tanzania |
|
WHY:
|
Every two minutes an adolescent girl or young woman was newly infected with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa in 2021. This high-level meeting is part of a broader initiative supported by UN Women and PEPFAR to offer leadership training and mentorship opportunities to young African women so they can successfully advocate for non-discriminatory access to HIV services and connect with policymakers to have a voice in their future. |
Note to journalists:
- 1:1 interviews with experts can be arranged upon request.
- Media can attend the opening session at the hotel from 9:00-10:20 a.m. to hear dignitaries’ remarks.
Contact:
Hanna Mtango
UN Women Tanzania
[ Click to reveal ]
+255 767 220883
Aijamal Duishebaeva
UN Women Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office
+66 979438127 (WhatsApp)