While HIV transmission has been globally declining, a rise of new HIV infections has been recorded in Lebanon as part of the MENA region. As the HIV file and the LGBTIQ+ file are interlaced, Beirut Pride decided in 2017 to activate an initiative that reflects on HIV and on sexually transmitted infections (STIs) in general, with World AIDS Day serving as the communications epicenter.
Beirut Pride joins forces with the National AIDS Control Program of the Ministry of Public Health in Lebanon and with MD Jacques Mokhbat (author of the strategic plan of the mentioned program and founder of the Lebanese AIDS Society) to organize, around World AIDS Day, a series of communication on HIV and STIs in collaboration with various organizations, colleges, schools, hospitals, malls and other venues.
Believing in the efficacy of decentralized initiatives, and wishing to expand interaction with people, especially individuals often left behind, we collaborate with regional structures in the country to contribute to mainstreaming the talk about STIs, to framing social stigma that surrounds HIV positive people and to highlighting safe practices.
International organizations have accompanied this project since its inception. UNAIDS has been granting permission to Beirut Pride to adapt its yearly WAD campaign into Arabic since 2017, and a partnership started with the WHO Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean in 2019.
The WAD x Beirut Pride logo was developed by Carma Andraos, Noureddine Tabbara and Hadi Damien.
Why is health a fundamental human right for all individuals?
1
For the same reasons that exposed them to the virus, people living with HIV (PLHIV) may be exposed to other infections such as hepatitis and STIs.
2
When the immunity of PLHIV is compromised, they become prone to tuberculosis and to other infections.
3
PLHIV may have other health needs not related to HIV.
4
Stigma and discrimination are major obstacles that prevent people from accessing HIV prevention, testing, treatment services, and even other health services, related to their HIV infection or not.
Source: WHO, Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean
Global Commitments
The world has committed to ending AIDS by 2030,
and to achieving the 90-90-90 targets by 2020
90% of people living with HIV know their status
90% of people living with HIV receive treatment
90% of people receiving treatment have their viral load undetectable
Are we there yet?
In the Eastern
Mediterranean Region,
Only 1 in 3 people living with HIV know their status
Only 1 in 5 people living with HIV receive treatment
. . .
Source: WHO, Regional Office for the Eastern Mediterranean
HIV Testing Venues in Lebanon for FREE, QUICK, ANONYMOUS Screenings.
Because testing is a form of prevention, we have compiled the operating venues in Lebanon where you can get an anonymous, free of charge, rapid HIV test. The map is based on the latest edition of the Voluntary Counselling and Testing Centres publication of the Ministry of Public Health in Lebanon. Open the map on your phone, and check the closest venue to you!
Click here to browse the map.
Each year, on 1 December, the world commemorates World AIDS Day. People around the world unite to show support for people living with HIV and to remember people who have died from AIDS-related medical complications.
Founded in 1988, World AIDS Day was the first ever international day for global health. Each year focuses on a specific theme in order to alert people globally to a growing list of HIV-related challenges. Individuals, United Nations agencies, governments and civil society structures join forces to focus and to campaign around the theme.
Awareness-raising activities take place around the globe;
People wear the red ribbon, the universal symbol for the fight against HIV/AIDS;
People living with HIV voice the issues that affect their lives;
People and organizations involved in the AIDS response mobilize in solidarity with the communities they serve;
Events highlight the current state of the epidemic.
World AIDS Day remains as relevant today as it’s always been, reminding people and governments that HIV has not gone away. There is still a critical need to increase funding for the AIDS response, to increase awareness of the impact of HIV on people’s lives, to end stigma and discrimination and to improve the quality of life of people living with HIV.
Click here to visit the page of Lebanon on the website of UNAIDS.
