The 21st International AIDS Conference To Take Place 18-22 July 2016 in Durban – Featured Durban Blog

 The conference will more fully incorporate several pre-conference meetings into the main conference programme. AIDS 2016 will be hosted in Durban, South Africa.

The new format will offer these pre-conference meetings within the main conference venue on 16-17 July, leading up to the Opening Session. These meetings, which have customarily been held off-site at surrounding areas, are open to all conference delegates. Attendees will have the ability to register online for pre-conference meetings during the AIDS 2016 registration process as part of the package.

“This was a strategic decision to offer a more holistic format to the traditional conference set-up,” said Chris Beyrer, IAS President and AIDS 2016 Co-Chair. “It will better enable delegates to access the strong pre-conference programming that will be offered.”

Olive Shisana, AIDS 2016 Local Co-Chair said, “This is the second time that Durban will be hosting the International AIDS Conference and marks a major milestone in the HIV response. We want to create an enhanced conference experience for everyone involved.”

Every year the International AIDS Conference has a dedicated theme, this year is “Access Equity Rights Now”. It is a call to action to work together and reach the people who still lack access to comprehensive treatment, prevention, care and support services. For example, more than 60% of people living with HIV remain without antiretroviral therapy; women and girls, men who have sex with men, transgender people, sex workers, young people, and people who use drugs and other marginalized groups remain under-prioritized in the response; investments in HIV prevention research appear to have flattened; and widespread violations of human rights including criminalisation continue to undermine effective responses.

AIDS 2016 is convened by five permanent partners: IAS, Global Network of People Living with HIV (GNP+), The International Community of Women with HIV/AIDS (ICW), International Council of AIDS Service Organizations (ICASO) and UNAIDS in collaboration with international and South African scientific and civil society partners. It is expected to convene over 18,000 delegates from around the world, including many journalists.