On 17 July, more than 400 representatives of transgender women and their supporters took part in the first transgender preconference meeting to be held at an international AIDS conference. The event, entitled “No more lip service: trans access, equity and rights now!”, was held in Durban, South Africa, on the eve of the 21st International AIDS Conference. It was organized by the Global Network of Transgender Women and HIV.
The event provided a forum to explore how services can be designed and implemented to be acceptable and accessible to transgender women, as outlined in a recently published practical guidance document, and included special sessions on human rights and gender-based violence. There were also presentations on the latest research into transgender people’s health in the Lancet and the Journal of the International AIDS Society.
The programme also looked at how transgender people could be better engaged in the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director Luiz Loures and the United States Global AIDS Coordinator and Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy, Deborah Birx, spoke at the event and stressed the importance of involving transgender people in the AIDS response.
“Our issues and vulnerabilities are more than just about HIV. Resources for transgender people are not reaching trans organizations and they do not have access to funding.”
Abina Aher International Trans Fund
“Fragile communities are everywhere and history shows that changes happen when the disempowered say “enough is enough” and take charge. The trans world is transforming the AIDS response.”
Luiz Loures UNAIDS Deputy Executive Director
“Solutions lie in peer-led implementation. We see you, we hear you today and we want to be part of the solution with you.”
Deborah Birx United States Global AIDS Coordinator and Special Representative for Global Health Diplomacy
“We haven’t served the trans community well. We need to pay attention to quality risk assessment, not just financial risk assessment.”
Ed Ngoksin Technical Adviser, Community Responses and Key Populations, Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria
