Although remarkable gains have been made in the fight against HIV/AIDS, there still remain some legislative barriers that must be addressed to advance the efforts.
To help chart a course that will allow for the barriers to be addressed, the Pan Caribbean Partnership Against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP) will be spearheading a forum for key stakeholders within the Region.
The ‘Regional Meeting for Advancing Recommendations for Addressing Gaps in the Human Rights Response’ under the PANCAP Justice for all Programme will receive funding from the CARIFORUM 10th European Development Fund (EDF) Programme of Support for Wider Caribbean Cooperation.
Among those that are being targeted for the meeting slated for October 30 and 31 in Kingston, Jamaica, are selected policymakers, Chief Medical Officers, Faith Leaders, Civil Society, People living with HIV, Key Populations including men who have sex with men, sex workers, transgender representatives, youth and National AIDS programme managers. Guyana is expected to be well represented at this key meeting as it works towards advancing its gains in the fight against the disease.
The meeting will be used to disseminate the findings of an assessment of the human rights situation in the Caribbean, including a status update, gaps, and opportunities, as well as bottlenecks with regard to HIV-related stigma and discrimination and the broader issues of human rights affecting key population groups.
The meeting will also be used to validate the findings of the assessment, reach consensus on the key priorities at the regional level, and obtain stakeholders’ commitments for addressing the gaps for achieving justice for all.
In an invited comment, Director of PANCAP, Mr. Dereck Springer, said that the assessment provides the Region with a comprehensive report on the policy and legislative barriers that need to be overcome if the Caribbean is to achieve the end of AIDS by 2030.
