Press release:  “Technical Consultation on Engaging and Retaining People Who Inject Drugs in HIV Treatment and Care”

19 November, 2015

The Middle East and North Africa Harm Reduction Association (MENAHRA), in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), has begun a “Technical Consultation on Engaging and Retaining People Who Inject Drugs (PWID) in HIV Treatment and Care”. The consultation will be taking place from the 19th until the 21st of November, 2015 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Beirut, Lebanon.

The consultation is being attended by stakeholders, UN organizations, community and civil society members, and other experts in the field.

The overall aim of the meeting is to discuss strategies and approaches to engage and retain People Who Inject Drugs along the continuum of HIV prevention, diagnosis, treatment and care. The specific objectives are to discuss obstacles and challenges to accelerating HIV treatment for PWID in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) Region, using the continuum of care as a framework from the perspective of different stakeholders. In addition, successful practices applied in other parts of the world will be reviewed in order to discuss their applicability in MENA context.

By the closure of the consultation, recommendations for policies and strategies and recommended actions to increase HIV treatment coverage among PWID (as part of comprehensive harm reduction services) will be developed and shared.