South Africa, Eswatini, and Zambia are set to begin administering a pioneering new HIV-prevention injection on Monday, marking the drug’s first public release in Africa, which has the world’s highest HIV burden.
Lenacapavir, taken twice a year, has been proven to lower the probability of HIV transmission by more than 99.9 percent, making it functionally equivalent to a potent vaccine.
In South Africa, where one in every five persons has HIV, a Wits University research team handled the deployment as part of a UN health agency-funded effort.
“The first individuals have begun using lenacapavir for HIV prevention in South Africa … making it among the first real-world uses of the 6-monthly injectable in low- and middle-income countries,” Unitaid said in a statement.
It did not say how many people received the first doses of the medicine, which costs $28,000 per year in the United States. A more widespread nationwide launch is scheduled next year.
Neighboring Zambia and Eswatini received 1,000 pills last month as part of a US program and are set to debut the medicine during World AIDS Day festivities on Monday.
Gilead Sciences, the producer, has pledged to offer lenacapavir to two million patients in countries with a high HIV load for free over the next three years as part of the plan.
Critics argue that this is much below the real requirement and that the market price is out of reach for the majority of people.
According to UNAIDS data for 2024, eastern and southern Africa account for around 52% of the world’s 40.8 million HIV-positive people.
Generic versions of lenacapavir are scheduled to be available in over 100 countries beginning in 2027, at a cost of roughly $40 per year, according to agreements between Unitaid and the Gates Foundation and Indian pharmaceutical companies.
Pre-exposure prophylaxis, or PrEP, has been used to prevent HIV for more than a decade, but its reliance on a daily pill has limited its impact on global infection rates.
