“To be effective, pandemic responses must go beyond one-way communication to involve communities at all levels in decision-making,” said Matthew Kavanagh, UNAIDS Acting deputy board member for politics, advocacy and knowledge.
“Community leadership is not just a nice extra. It is essential to ending pandemics.”
a step in the right direction
In a positive step forward, the firstInternational Definition of “Community-Led Response”was presented to the UNAIDS working team, along with other findings51st Meeting of the Program Coordination Committeethe United Nations Joint Program on HIV and AIDS.
The development has potential significance as humanists and public health experts believe the best way to deal with disease outbreaks is to work with communities. The new definition of Community-Led Response will help build and monitor capacity at the local level.
“We will only end AIDS and other pandemics if we ensure that this community infrastructure is purposely activated, strengthened, monitored and resourced,” argued Mr. Kavanagh.
Pandemic Template
UNAIDS Task Team Delegates on Community-Led Action – convened jointly in Chiang Mai, Thailand, by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Development Program (UNDP) – claimed that the approach laid down by UN agencies, governments and others is vital both to combat other pandemics and to prepare for the pandemics to come.
“Stop COVID-19, mpox [monkeypox]and Ebolaand preparing for the next pandemic, all of which require this government-community partnership,” the UNAIDS official continued.
Protect neglected items
Using the new definitions and recommendations, UNAIDS chief Winnie Byanyima and Federal Minister of Health Karl Lauterbach published an article in The lancetcalls for the inclusion of a comprehensive “joint pandemic infrastructure” in new planning, international agreements and financing.
Leaders stressed that strong municipal infrastructure and working synergistically with governments are a necessary but neglected element of pandemic prevention, preparedness and response.
With evidence of AIDS, mpox, COVID-19and Ebola, the authors described how community-led organizations bring trust, communication channels, and outreach to marginalized groups that complement governmental roles and enhance justice.
unleash progress
The UNAIDS Governing Board also held dialogues between Member States and non-governmental participants on developing laws and policies to facilitate community-led interventions – including better systems for funding community-led organizations and integrating community-generated data into response management.
“The newly agreed framework for defining and measuring community-led action makes us better equipped to address the inequalities that are hampering progress towards ending AIDS,” stressed Mr Kavanagh.
Delegates saw firsthand how population-led health services have reached people at risk of HIV and achieved one of the most equitable HIV responses in the region.
For example, in the middle of the war in Ukraine, a network of people living with HIV called100 percent lifehas used peer links to communicate with the displaced and deliver medicine, food and emergency relief.
A woman is tested for HIV at a hospital in Wau, South Sudan.
Integrate answers
To end the AIDS pandemic, community responses must be integrated into all levels of country strategies, from planning, budgeting and implementation to monitoring and evaluation.
“While what is most commonly thought of as infrastructure – like laboratories and hospitals – is important, an effective response to a pandemic also requires community infrastructure, people to do outreach, trusted voices who can speak to marginalized communities, independent accountability and participation in decision making,” said Mr Kavanagh.
“International pandemic agreements and funding should include specific targets for community-led capacities.”
