Rwanda
By Dr. Cyprien Baribwira
Rwanda Country Director
World AIDS Day offers a chance to reflect on the progress that has been made in ending HIV/AIDS. In Rwanda, we have made remarkable progress toward achieving HIV epidemic control. Among the more significant achievements are the high levels of linkage to care and viral load suppression. According to the 2018-2019 Rwanda Population-based HIV Impact Assessment, the annual incidence of HIV among adults was 0.08%, while 83.8% of adults (15-64 years old) living with HIV were aware of their status and 97.5% of people who had tested positive were on antiretroviral therapy (ART) with a viral suppression of 90.1%.
Our mission at Ciheb Rwanda has been to support the Rwanda Ministry of Health and CDC Rwanda. We are proud of what we have accomplished together and look forward to our continued work to combat HIV and other emerging threats.
Working Towards Long-term Epidemic Control
Ciheb Rwanda is currently leading two projects in-country. The Imakaza Project is supporting the Ministry of Health by institutionalizing national, provincial, and district HIV oversight and delivery systems. The overall goal is to improve healthcare worker competency for effective high-quality HIV service delivery that meets the goals of universal access to treatment and long-term epidemic control in the context of dynamic, evidence-driven programming.
Our staff have updated the national guidelines for the prevention and management of HIV and have strengthened the capacity and quality of Rwanda’s laboratory network. In addition, we have scaled up the HIV continuous quality improvement (CQI) framework, integrated clinical mentorship to strengthen service delivery at targeted sites, and provided technical assistance to pilot an HIV-integrated model to inform its national scale-up.
Funding from UNICEF has also allowed us to work on the second project, which is focused on lowering maternal-to-child transmission of HIV and eliminating new pediatric HIV infections.
Responding to COVID-19
In response to the COVID-19 pandemic, Ciheb Rwanda provided technical assistance to the Rwanda Biomedical Centre’s HIV division to adjust services to people living with HIV to mitigate the potential impact of coronavirus infection to the clients.
Although Rwanda experienced a spike in COVID-19 cases a few months ago, the situation has now improved. We have played our part by supporting MOH and CDC Rwanda in adapting HIV service delivery during COVID-19. Unfortunately, HIV and COVID-19 do not operate in a vacuum. These illnesses are intersectional, and COVID-19 has challenged our ability to continue making progress with HIV. During the pandemic, our goal has been to ensure that people living with HIV continue to receive ART and to keep people safe at healthcare facilities.
Rwanda has received support in funding and equipment from the World Bank and Qatar to tackle COVID-19. We know that global health battles truly require the efforts of all global partners. On this World AIDS Day, Ciheb Rwanda stands in solidarity with others across the world in reducing the spread and impact of infectious diseases.
Cyprien Baribwira, MD, is a pediatrician who has worked in the field of pediatrics in sub-Sahara Africa for 30 years as a lecturer, clinician, and researcher. He is the former head of pediatrics at the University of Rwanda.
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