Chikwawa District AIDS Coordinating Committee (DACC) has hailed YONECO for its role in contributing towards the increasing access to HIV services among men and key populations.
The commendation was made the chairperson of the committee during a review meeting that was held in the district on 18 December, 2024. The review meeting was organized by YONECO to provide updates on the progress of Addressing Unmet Needs in HIV Testing Services for Men and Key Populations which is being funded by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
During the meeting, the DACC members were briefed on the project summary, intervention framework, comprehensive package, key achievements and some challenges encountered during the 2024 implementation period.
YONECO presented some figures on the total number of community members who have been enrolled in the program and the number of people who have been supported to access various services. Some of the services which the targeted community members accessed include HIV self-testing, Sexual Gender-based Violence (SGBV) counselling, as well as Sexual and Reproductive Health (SRH) commodities like condoms and lubricants.
The meeting was further notified that YONECO, through the project, supported various HIV prevention meetings, ‘Know Your Service Providers’ sessions, orientation of bar owners, as well as supporting the district commemoration event for the 2024 World AIDS Day.
Following the presentation, the DAAC Chairperson hailed YONECO for the accomplishments achieved in the year and commended the organization for regularly updating stakeholders on project status.
Among other challenges, it was indicated that some people cover long distances to access services like PrEP, frequent stockout of some SRH commodities, turnaround times (TAT) for viral load results.
The meeting was concluded with the development of innovative strategies for addressing the various challenges that were presented by YONECO and other key players.
