Unitaid invests an additional US$15 million to accelerate introduction, adoption and uptake of breakthrough HIV prevention products in diverse regions

Building on its broader US$110 million investment in next-generation HIV prevention, Unitaid announced an additional US$15 million to expand support to communities and countries introducing long-acting injectable lenacapavir, a breakthrough medicine for preventing HIV. The investment will also help prepare health systems for other anticipated innovations in HIV prevention including a once-monthly oral pill and a new formulation of lenacapavir that provides one year of protection.

The additional investment will expand Unitaid's support for the introduction of lenacapavir beyond early adopter countries, in response to growing demand as new countries across Africa, Latin America, Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia prepare to roll out lenacapavir at a time when HIV prevention programs face unprecedented pressure from cuts to global health funding.

Through three complementary Global South-led projects implemented by Wits RHI in partnership with the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), the International Treatment Preparedness Coalition (ITPC), and the University Teaching Hospital/Ministry of Health Zambia, Unitaid will support countries to introduce lenacapavir rapidly and effectively, strengthen the community partnerships and leadership needed for successful rollout, and prepare for the next generation of HIV prevention tools. Collectively, the three projects address practical barriers to introducing new long-acting HIV prevention options, reinforcing a sustainable ecosystem for lenacapavir and future pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) innovations.

The new investment builds on rapid progress across Unitaid's HIV prevention portfolio. Over the past year, Unitaid and its partners have supported the introduction of lenacapavir in early-adopter countries including Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa and Zambia, generated real-world evidence through implementation studies in South Africa and Brazil, kicked off new investments focused on decentralized and community-based delivery approaches in Zambia and South Africa, accelerated access to affordable generics through a landmark agreement to make injectable lenacapavir available for US$40 per person per year by 2027, and supported South Africa's regional manufacturing plan for lenacapavir.

These achievements have laid the foundations for expanding access to long-acting HIV prevention to more countries while preparing for the next generation of PrEP options.

Together, the projects will expand support for countries introducing lenacapavir across Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, Eastern Europe and Southeast Asia, helping ensure scientific breakthroughs can be rapidly translated into public health impact and scaled up as generic products become available.

Wits RHI, working with CHAI, will build on its ongoing support to early adopter countries that have recently introduced lenacapavir by expanding support to new countries within and beyond Sub-Saharan Africa, strengthening communities to play a central role in lenacapavir rollout and demand generation, and preparing health systems for future HIV prevention options through user preference research and market projections.

ITPC will build upon their community networks to strengthen treatment literacy, improve provider sensitization and conduct targeted demand-generation activities in countries outside Sub-Saharan Africa, supporting community readiness and trust to adopt long-acting HIV prevention options during the early introduction phase.

Alongside supporting today's rollout of lenacapavir, Unitaid is also investing early in the next generation of HIV prevention products currently in development, including monthly oral PrEP and a simplified formulation of lenacapavir that could provide protection for up to one year.

These innovations have the potential to expand choice while also reducing the burden on HIV programs. A long-acting oral option could offer greater flexibility in delivery approaches, providing easier access to those in need and lowering programmatic costs. Furthermore, with timely and strategic market shaping interventions, it has the potential to be the lowest cost PrEP option yet. Unitaid is investing now to expand access and create a pathway to cost-effective scale up.

In addition to user preference research and market analysis to be undertaken by Wits RHI and CHAI, the University Teaching Hospital/Ministry of Health Zambia will leverage the innovative hub-and-spoke delivery model for lenacapavir to prepare for forthcoming, simpler HIV prevention options. This model is currently bringing HIV prevention closer to communities through pharmacies, health posts, private clinics and community health workers, while generating evidence on cost-effectiveness and impact to inform wider implementation. Driven by country leadership, the model provides a platform for rapidly integrating emerging long-acting HIV prevention options into both facility-based and decentralized services as they become available. Unitaid's proactive investment enables the groundwork to be prepared now, to minimize the time for integration of new products, pending the results of clinical trials.

By applying the same forward-looking approach that Unitaid used to accelerate access to lenacapavir ? from proactive investments to community engagement and country readiness ? Unitaid aims to shorten the time between scientific breakthrough and equitable access for future prevention options.

Overall, this investment reflects Unitaid's broader strategy of combining support for country introduction, community engagement and real-world implementation with efforts to accelerate access to innovative solutions and enable low-cost, quality-assured supplies ? helping ensure lenacapavir and other forthcoming prevention options translate into fewer HIV infections and more lives protected as quickly as possible.

"Scientific breakthroughs only save lives if they reach the people who need them," said Dr. Philippe Duneton, Executive Director at Unitaid. "This investment is about helping countries move quickly from innovation to impact. By working in partnership with countries and communities, we're helping ensure that long-acting HIV prevention reaches people as rapidly as possible while laying the foundations for tomorrow's prevention tools."