OTZ targets HIV treatment gaps amongst adolescents
Nnasaretha Kgamanyane | Tuesday April 16, 2024 09:05
UNICEF representative, Dr Joan Matji, emphasised the importance of OTZ at a time when adolescents are lagging in meeting the 95-95-95 targets.
She stressed the need to prevent adolescents from being left behind. "Operation Triple Zero aims to bridge the treatment gap amongst adolescents, ensuring they don't miss doses or appointments and achieve viral suppression," she said. "While clinical care is vital," she added, "we mustn't overlook the various challenges adolescents face, such as socio-economic disparities, which hinder treatment accessibility and adherence.
Addressing these multidimensional issues is crucial to closing the treatment gap, particularly for unemployed youth and young women disproportionately affected by HIV." Matji highlighted the importance of integrating services like Sexual Reproductive Health (SRH) and addressing gender-based violence (GBV), especially in remote areas.
She emphasised that without tackling these social determinants, the gap amongst young people will persist, thwarting efforts to meet AIDS targets. Expressing gratitude for engaged youth, Matji emphasised their pivotal role in shaping the country's future. She encouraged ongoing engagement with decision-makers to amplify youth voices. "As we near the last mile of ending AIDS by 2030," Matji continued, "It's crucial to target relevant stakeholders and ensure a coordinated response from government, multi-laterals, CSOs, and communities.
This necessitates leveraging financial resources through public-private partnerships and optimising resource allocation efficiency." Matji stressed the importance of bringing services closer to young people to ensure equal access to treatment and care. Through OTZ, the aim is for young people to commit to zero missed doses, appointments, and viral load, thereby reducing the current treatment gap. Deputy Chief of Mission at the US Embassy, Amanda Jacobsen, elaborated on OTZ emphasising its focus on "zero viral load, Zero missed appointments, and Zero missed drugs".
She underscored CDC Botswana's support, noting a $467,000 allocation from the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to UNICEF for this initiative in fiscal year 2023–2024. “Adolescents (ages 10–19) and young persons (ages 15–24) living with HIV are amongst the most vulnerable yet underserved populations in the HIV response compared to adult populations. “They lag across the entire HIV treatment cascade. According to the Botswana AIDS Impact Survey (BAIS V), amongst young people (aged 15–24 years) living with HIV, 84.5% were aware of their status, 98.5% of those aware were on ART, and 91.6% of those on ART had viral load suppression,” she explained.