ZAMBIA RECEIVES INJECTABLE HIV DRUG
By:Sun FM TV Reporter
The United States has announced the delivery of the first doses of Lenacapavir, a groundbreaking HIV prevention drug developed by American pharmaceutical company Gilead Sciences, to Zambia and Eswatini.
The milestone marks a major step in a global health initiative aimed at curbing the spread of HIV in high-burden countries.
The delivery is part of a market-shaping initiative under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), in partnership with the U.S. Department of State, Gilead Sciences, and the Global Fund to Fight HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria.
The initiative, first announced on September 4, 2025, aims to distribute at least 2 million doses of Lenacapavir, at cost, to targeted populations across ten countries with high HIV prevalence.
U.S. officials were on the ground in Zambia and Eswatini to oversee the arrival of the first shipments. With strong demand and rapid progress in manufacturing, the partners expect to exceed the 2 million–dose commitment by the 2028 target date.
Lenacapavir, approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) on June 18, 2025, is a twice-yearly injectable drug that demonstrated over 99% efficacy in clinical trials.
Jeremy Lewin, Senior Official for Foreign Assistance, Humanitarian Affairs and Religious Freedom, said the drug is a standard for global access to innovative therapies.
Meanwhile, Peter Sands, Executive Director of the Global Fund, emphasized the importance of community-centered delivery, adding that real results will come from rapidly reaching individuals at high risk for new HIV acquisition and at scale.
Further, Daniel O’Day, Chairman and CEO of Gilead Sciences, hailed the moment as historic, as it reflects commitment to supporting those with the greatest need.
With Zambia among the first recipients, the country is poised to play a leading role in the rollout of Lenacapavir across the region — offering renewed hope in the fight against HIV/AIDS.
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Please people! First they remove USAID from Zambia, then they turn around with a prevention injection!?? How?? For God’s sake, they are using Zambians and the rest of Africa as their Guinea Pigs! They always do this to us. Wake up, wake up people of Zambia. Enough!
How many young people graduate in the Sciences in our Universities? Are we not able to produce our own anti-retrovirals??
Do we not have our own brilliant minds from these institutions to have the capacity to make decisions about which drugs can help our people??
Let us stop depending on people who don’t care about us and start to look after ourselves for a change!