AIDS Foundation East-West (AFEW) is deeply concerned about the failure of the United Nations member states to explicitly address the HIV epidemic among key populations, especially among the people who use drugs, in their Political Declaration adopted on June 8 at the United Nations High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS.
According to the 2016 Global AIDS Update report released by the UNAIDS, HIV is still on the rise in the region of Eastern Europe and Central Asia. In 2015 there were 190 000 news HIV cases reported in the region among all age groups.
The position document clearly demonstrates the fact that as the whole world registers the decrease in the rates of HIV spreading and deaths due to AIDS, the situation in East Europe & Central Asia still stays grave.
Whilst AFEW’s social bureau provides services to all key populations, the majority of its clients consist of people who use drugs. None of those who use drugs holds a permanent job and almost all of them served time in prison.
For many years, people who use drugs in Ukraine, especially those younger than 18 years, have been facing serious barriers that prevent them from accessing support services.
From 19 till 21 April 2016, nearly 200 UN member states will come together to discuss the solution for the ‘world drug problem’. We spoke to Edo, whose voice will represent the voices of the drug user community during the UN General Assembly Special Session on Drugs (UNGASS).
As part of our strategy to keep the dialogue with the countries we work and to support our local partners that implement groundbreaking projects for key populations, AFEW is organising the following seminars during the 5th Eastern Europe and Central Asia AIDS Conference (EECAAC).
Linara, Thuan and David invite you to step into their world and experience what it is like to be a female drug user in Kyrgyzstan, a male sex worker in Vietnam or a young gay man in Uzbekistan. The exhibition features a unique combination of photos made by these community members themselves and complementary photos that were made by award winning photographer.
At the seminar AFEW will introduce a small grants programme to which organisations and/or individuals with interesting and unique research proposal can apply. The grant programme is available in the framework of preparations for the XXII International AIDS Conference in 2018 in the Netherlands.
Europe’s leading experts, medical specialists and patient advocacy groups on hepatitis announced their intention to work towards the elimination of Hepatitis C Virus (HCV) in Europe by 2030.
