On September 28, 2021, a high-level meeting “Progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS and the national response to eliminate all forms of HIV-related stigma and discrimination” will be held in Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan).

As of August 1, 2021, 10,807 people living with HIV were registered in the country. 4842 people are getting antiretroviral therapy.

State bodies of the Kyrgyz Republic, confirmed their commitment and readiness to implement the Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS and achieve the 95-95-95 goal as well as approved an interdepartmental plan to overcome legal barriers related to HIV/AIDS.

The Government’s HIV Program is also coming to an end, and the country is starting to develop a new national strategy. The Program is expected to include substantive sections aimed at eliminating HIV-related stigma and discrimination. Strengthening these measures is necessary due to the fact that, despite the taken steps, it remains a serious challenge and barrier in the provision of services for PLHIV and other key populations. For example, in the electronic system for documenting offenses ReACT for the first half of 2021, 320 cases of violations of the rights of PLHIV and other key populations were recorded.

Among the participants of the event:

• Zhyldyz Bakashova, Deputy Chairwoman of the Cabinet of Ministers
• Alexander Goliusov, UNAIDS Regional Director
• Michel Kazatchkine, UNAIDS Special Advisor
• Andriy Klepikov, Alliance for Public Health
• Dr. Jakob Huber, Senior Partner Licit
• Aibar Sultangaziev, Partnership Network Association
• Tetiana Deshko, Alliance for Public Health
• Alexandra Volgina Global Network of PLWH GNP +

As well as Heads of Ministries and departments, representatives of international and non-governmental organizations.

The meeting will be supported by the project “Sustainability of services for key groups in the regions of Eastern Europe and Central Asia” (#SoS_project).

SoS_project: The implementation of the three-year project coordinated by the Alliance for Public Health, in a consortium with the 100% Life (All-Ukrainian Network of PLWH), the Central Asian HIV’ Association and the Eurasian Key Populations Health Network, with the participation of national governmental and non-governmental organizations, regional key populations networks , international agencies and organizations, as well as technical partners, with financial support  The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

REAct (Rights – Evidence – Actions) is a tool  that was developed by Frontline AIDS for monitoring and response to human rights violations at community level. The system is implemented by ICF “Alliance for Public Health” with a technical support of Frontline AIDS and financial support of  the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. REAct enables organizations to record cases of human rights violations among key populations and respond to human rights barriers in accessing HIV prevention and treatment, as well as health care services.

On September 27, 2021, from 09.30 to 12.30 a Round table “Accelerating the response to the HIV / AIDS epidemic in Osh city” will be held in Osh city (Kyrgyzstan).

The Kyrgyz Republic, along with other UN members, joined and is implementing the “Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS: On the Fast-Track to Accelerate the Fight against HIV and to End the AIDS Epidemic by 2030”.

The event organized with the support of the Alliance for Public Health and the Regional Project “Sustainability of Services for Key Populations in the Eastern Europe and Central Asia Regions” (#SoS_project) and will be attended by invited guests who will share their experiences and strategies in relation to COVID, drug policy, as well as harm reduction to health and society against HIV, tuberculosis and social disintegration.

On the Round table will be presented data the implementation of the city’s HIV program and state social contracting in Osh city. The event will host participants from international organizations, deputies of the сity, Kenesh of Osh city, representatives of law enforcement agencies, heads of medical institutions, local offices, non-governmental organizations.

Among the speakers:

• Almaz Mambetov, Mayor of Osh city
• Jakob Huber, Senior Partner Licit
• Andriy Klepikov, Alliance for Public Health
• Ravshan Mazhitov Director of the Plus Center Foundation
• Aibar Sultangaziev, Partnership Network Association
• Akylbek Mamaseyitov Head of the Internal Affairs Department of Osh city
• Gulgaky Mamasalieva, Director of Interbilim Osh

As well as other representatives of departments, international and non-governmental organizations.

SoS_project: The implementation of the three-year project coordinated by the Alliance for Public Health, in a consortium with the 100% Life (All-Ukrainian Network of PLWH), the Central Asian HIV’ Association and the Eurasian Key Populations Health Network, with the participation of national governmental and non-governmental organizations, regional key populations networks , international agencies and organizations, as well as technical partners, with financial support  The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

On September 14, 2021 Alliance for Public Health, within the Sustainability of Services for Key Populations in EECA regional project (SoS_project) in collaboration with IAS – the International AIDS Society will launch Regional Dialogue on Progressive Approaches to HIV Diagnostics and Treatment in Eastern Europe and Central Asia (EECA) and Balkan countries.

This Dialogue is organized for the civil society representatives and governments who are involved into the AIDS response, as well as researchers, community, activists and policy makers from both regions with the aimto demonstrate operational research (OR) results, focusing on lessons learned and recommendations for implementing similar interventions in other countries in the region. Also, the participants will get ad hoc data on assess the situation in the region with the implementation of the latest recommended approaches to diagnosis and treatment, with an emphasis on the interventions that have been piloted within the ORs, identifying key action points/next steps/road maps for the countries of the region to improve the situation and achieve results on the implementation of interventions, as well as possibility to improve corresponding exchange of experience – information and technical support.

Languages: English and Russian (simultaneous translation will be provided)

To participate, please register here: https://bit.ly/2VepJeT

All registered participants will be sent information on participation.

*SoS_project: The implementation of the three-year project will be coordinated by the Alliance for Public Health, in a consortium with the 100% Life (All-Ukrainian Network of PLWH), the Central Asian HIV’ Association and the Eurasian Key Populations Health Network, with the participation of national governmental and non-governmental organizations, regional key populations networks , international agencies and organizations, as well as technical partners, with financial support  The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria

Contact for more information:

Inna Gavrylova, PR & Communications manager, gavrylova@aph.org.ua

We are pleased to announce that The International Charitable Foundation “Alliance for Public Health” is organizing a competition for the media “Drug Addiction vs. Drug Policy: problems and solutions in Ukraine” for the second year in a row. We invite the journalists of national and regional mass media to take part in the competition for the best journalistic materials on the drug policy and protection of the rights of people who use drugs/patients on substitution maintenance therapy (SMT). The activities will include visits to the regions of Ukraine and training events for the journalists.

The application can be submitted by the authors/editors or editorial teams who have published (or aired) their news/articles/videos/posts from January 1^st to November 12^th, 2021.

The All-Ukrainian competition for the media was created to inform the people of Ukraine about modern prevention and treatment techniques for people who use drugs with an emphasis on the peculiarities of introduction and expansion of SMT in medical institutions, increasing access for people who use drugs to comprehensive services of the national program on HIV/AIDS and hepatitis C prevention, tuberculosis, problems of observance of the human rights.

The urgency of reforming and liberalization of the national repressive drug policy of Ukraine, as well as the decriminalization for people who use drugs on practical successful examples of such work in Ukraine and effective practices of developed countries, are the priority tasks of the competition.

The jury, which will include well-known Ukrainian editors and journalists, as well as public activists and representatives of the Alliance, will determine one winner in each of the following categories:

• Television and radio
• Printing press
• Online edition
• Blogging

The winners of the journalist competition will receive diplomas and incentive prizes. In addition, this competition provides individual awards for initiative materials, such as a series of texts/articles/videos/posts, the creation of special projects, the collaboration of several editions, and so on.

Requirements for competitive works:

• Texts/articles/videos/posts can be prepared in any language of national minorities with a translation into Ukrainian or Russian.
• Publications should reflect Ukrainian realities and, preferably, contain references to the best world practices, demonstrate the real state of affairs with an emphasis on ways to solve these problems.
• The jury will give preference to well-reasoned texts/articles/videos/posts, which prove the need to expand the access of people who use drugs to substitution maintenance therapy and promote their decriminalization on the examples of the best world practices. The focus should be on countering organized drug trafficking, not on stigma or discrimination against people who use drugs.
• The publications may also cover certain aspects, such as women who use drugs and its taboos in Ukrainian society, changes in the drug scene and adolescent addiction with an emphasis on synthetic drugs, and so on.
• All materials submitted by media representatives must be original and free of plagiarism.
• One author (editorial team) can submit an unlimited number of works to the competition.
• All contestants must enter information about the posted material in the registration form at the link: https://forms.gle/6xRHwdCU2f67o23s8

The deadline for submission of materials is November 12^th, 2021 (6 p.m).

 Please visit our website for more information https://aph.org.ua/uk/golovna/

and FB-page https://www.facebook.com/AlliancePublicHealth.

he best materials will be published on the information resources of the ICF “Alliance for Public Health”, so when applying to the competition, the authors automatically allow such publications.

The Second All-Ukrainian competition for the media “Drug Addiction vs. Drug Policy: problems and solutions in Ukraine” is part of the project “Accelerating Progress in Reducing the Burden of Tuberculosis and HIV in Ukraine” implemented by ICF “Alliance for Public Health” with the support of The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

On April 22, Medical Patent Pool (MPP) announced that it signed sublicence agreements with pharmaceutical companies Hetero and Viatris (through its subsidiary Mylan), to manufacture and supply dolutegravir (DTG) and DTG-based regimen to Azerbaijan, Belarus, Kazakhstan and Malaysia.

Sergey Filippovich, director of #SoS_project at the Alliance for Public Health: “In the countries of Eastern Europe and Central Asia, the region with the greatest HIV treatment deficit and limited resources, this is a real breakthrough. Now even more people will be able to receive the latest innovative treatment and significantly improve the quality of their health. In this example of cooperation, we see that through joint efforts, access to effective ART will be expanded. And our work with the partners of the regional project to build the sustainability of HIV services continues. ”

In late 2020, ViiV Healthcare (the manufacturer of the delusional drug) and MPP signed a licensing agreement for these four countries, aimed at expanding access to generics of dolutegravir and ensuring a lower cost of the drug.

“We are delighted that more people living with HIV in the four countries will soon be able to access DTG-based regimens, especially TLD (tenofovir disoproxil fumarate/lamivudine/dolutegravir), the first-line regimen recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO), which will now be available in these countries in a single pill,” says Charles Gore, Executive Director of MPP.

An official press release from MPP indicates that Hetero and Viatris (through its subsidiary Mylan) were selected following a rigorous and impartial selection process. They are longstanding partners of the Medical Patent Pool and have a proven track record of developing, manufacturing and supplying essential medicines to countries around the world, including low- and middle-income countries. “As Hetero and Mylan have already received approvals for DTG and TLD from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and WHO prequalification, they will be able to supply these much-needed products rapidly to the four countries. A third generic manufacturer is in the process of being selected.”

On April 27, 2021, from 11:00 to 12:30 (CEST, UTC +2 or from 12:00 to 13:30 EEST, UTC +3), an online discussion will be held “The Balkans’ response to COVID-19: experience of #SoS_project partners”.
This is the second in a series of events to discuss the COVID-19 response in EECA and SEE countries. The main goal is to share experiences to improve the regional response to the pandemic.

The first online discussion took place on April 7, 2021 with the presentation of research reports on the impact of COVID-19 on HIV and tuberculosis programs. More than 120 people from 15 countries took part in the event. To view the reports, go to the Alliance for Public Health library >>>

Event agenda:
11:00-11:05 – Opening remarks
11:05-11:20 – Andrej Senih, Executive Director of Stronger Together (North Macedonia)
                       Maintaining essential HIV services and introducing new ones in Covid-19 time
11:20-11:35 – Aida Kurtovic, LLB, MA, Executive Director of the Health Partnership (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
                       Innovation in COVID-19 response
11:35-11:50 –- Goran_Radisavljević, CEO, Timok Youth Center (Serbia)
                       COVID-19 case detection and vaccination – implementation strategy and challenges
11:50-12:05 – Sanja Šišović, program director of NGO CAZAS (Montenegro)
                       Access to HIV prevention, testing and treatment during COVID 19 epidemic
12: 05-12: 20 – Dr. Fifa Rahman, principal researcher of the Matahari Global Solutions (United Kingdom)
                  Results of the study on the impact of COVID-19 on the sustainability of HIV and TB services (accent on Balkan)
12: 20-12: 30 – Q&A session.

Learn more about events and speakers >>>

To participate, please register here: https://cutt.ly/jvPkG43
All registered participants will be sent information on participation.

Organizers: Alliance for Public Health, Partnerships in Health, Timocki Omladinski Centar, Stronger Together, CAZAS.

We at the Alliance care about the safety of our partners who are #AlwaysAtFrontLine and of clients of HIV prevention projects!

Considering another upsurge in COVID-19 incidence and another lockdown all over the country, Alliance for Public Health has made an urgent procurement: 4 mln medical masks, 47 thousand litres of a disinfectant, and 300 thousand pairs of gloves (for the total amount of around UAH 12 mln)!

A significant part of the goods is already on the way to our partner organizations, and we expect that it will fill their need for 2021 — for protecting both personnel and clients coming to receive HIV prevention, testing and confirmation services — thus enabling uninterrupted provision of all the services regardless of the difficult epidemiologic circumstances in the country.

All the procured personal protective equipment have passed state sanitary-epidemiologic examination and received necessary certificates of conformity. Let us take care of our health and of the health of others!

Protect yourself and the people around you!

In order to honor World TB Day, which is commemorated annually on March 24, the Alliance for Public Health is calling upon MPs, government officials, public authorities, doctors, scientists, international partners, and civil society to pay particular attention to people affected by tuberculosis (TB) against the backdrop of the spreading COVID-19 pandemic. Time is running out is the slogan that has brought together organizations and activists this year in an effort to focus attention on the commitments made by countries to eliminate TB.
“Do we allow the possibility that the situation with COVID-19 may be here to stay or even get worse over the next 10-20 years? No! The entire world has mobilized to make sure the answer here is a resounding ‘No’! And what about TB? The COVID-19 pandemic has taught humanity how to take concerted action, and we see and know what works and what does not. We need the prioritized policies, the resources, modern treatments, a focus on human needs, and the effective engagement of communities and civil society. Let’s not settle for half measures every year!” points out Andriy Klepikov, the Executive Director of the Alliance for Public Health.

During this past year of living with the COVID-19 pandemic, we have witnessed unprecedented safety and security measures, as well as quarantine restrictions imposed by Ukraine and other countries. We had to find modern and effective approaches to doing our work in the new conditions, which have already demonstrated their efficacy. These include active TB case finding among new vulnerable populations, the widespread introduction of video directly observed therapy for TB patients, and strengthening patient support to maintain adherence to treatment.

Civil society, which has traditionally played a key role in combating TB and has been actively involved throughout the process of TB service delivery, has become a link between the health care system and people affected by TB under COVID-19-related quarantine restrictions. During this difficult period, civil society proved to be a cornerstone of TB diagnosis and continuing care.

Thus, the efforts of the Alliance and its partner organizations have made it possible to maintain the effectiveness of TB treatment at the pre-pandemic level. A sufficient amount of anti-tuberculosis drugs was purchased and delivered to patients. Additionally, at the request of the representatives of the regional TB service, necessary medical equipment was purchased; medical and social workers were provided with personal protective equipment; partners in the regions provided with SARS-CoV-2 antigen rapid test kits.

To facilitate successful treatment outcomes, patients were linked to medical and psycho-social support in 8 regions. This strategy led to TB recovery rates being 91.3% for patients with drug-susceptible TB and 82.4% for patients with drug-resistant TB.
In addition, the Alliance and its partner NGOs continued with their active efforts to identify TB cases among vulnerable populations through screening surveys for TB-like symptoms and using a results-based funding approach. Thus, in 24 regions, nearly 104,000 people from most-at-risk groups were screened, of which more than 97% with a positive screening result were linked to diagnostic services.

A new grant from the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria for 2021-2023 provides for the expanded scope of activities intended to detect new TB cases among most-at-risk groups, including children and residents of areas along the demarcation line in the government-controlled areas of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions. Efforts to support the mental health of people with TB are also underway to help them successfully complete treatment. In a bid for further improving patient rights, a gender-sensitive algorithm is currently being developed for healthcare professionals to counsel TB patients and strengthen patient rights protection in collaboration with TBPeople Ukraine, a charitable organization of TB patients.

The Alliance is continuing its policy-making activity and efforts towards advancing TB political commitments. Thus, on March 17, 2021, at the initiative of the inter-factional parliamentary group called The Parliamentary Platform To Fight TB, which is supported by the Alliance, the Committee hearings on measures for combating TB during the pandemic caused by the SARS-CoV-2 coronavirus were organized and held. However, in order to contain the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the TB sector, multiple pressing issues need to be addressed as soon as possible. Thus, given the overall decrease in the number of TB cases identified over the last year, which is likely to lead to a spike in the number of complicated cases and an increase in TB-related deaths in the near future, we would like to stress the need for more attention and vigilance on the part of healthcare workers towards TB signs and symptoms. Among the issues that need to be addressed as soon as possible is the development and approval of a plan for the transition from donor to public funding.

We hope that next year these and other challenges will be overcome through our joint efforts.

The Alliance, as always, is ready for undertaking large-scale and decisive action in the fight against TB, and we feel deeply grateful to our partners and donors, civil society and key communities, professional and governmental organizations for the fruitful cooperation in overcoming the TB epidemic in Ukraine!

National TB Hotline: 0800503080