CALL FOR PROPOSITION OF ICASA 2023 THEME & OBJECTIVES

BACKGROUND OF ICASA

The International Conference on AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Infections in Africa (ICASA) is a major and only bilingual international AIDS conference which takes place in Africa. It is a biennial conference which alternates between Anglophone and Francophone African countries. ICASA has been organized for 30 years now to mitigate the impact of HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Hepatitis and Malaria, and the debilitating effects which these diseases have on our communities, where there is no stigma and discrimination against PLHIV and their families, and where social justice and equity to accessing treatment prevails. So far ICASA has been hosted in (15) fifteen countries with more than 100,000 direct participants. The last ICASA was held in Durban, South Africa in 2021 with 4025 delegates in attendance, 78 abstracts were selected for oral presentation and 384 abstracts were selected for virtual poster exhibition out of a total of 1601 abstracts received. ICASA awarded 1238 scholarships to attend the conference and provided 1144 scholarship recipients virtual access to the conference.

According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), Zimbabwe has made great progress in the response to HIV over the past decade. It is estimated that 1.2 million of the 1.3 million people living with HIV in the country are now on life-saving medicines. AIDS-related deaths have decreased by 63% since 2010, with new HIV infections down by 66% over the same period. After ICASA 2015 Zimbabwe, ICASA 2023 Zimbabwe will be an excellent opportunity to assess, review and promote inter-sectoral achievements in the AIDS response and to strengthen the partnership among governments, civil Societies, and development partners towards 95-95-95 and ending AIDS by 2030. ICASA 2023 is expected to convene more than 10,000 delegates from nearly 150 countries, including more than 200 journalists around the globe. The 22^nd edition of ICASA will be held from 4^th to 9^th December 2023 in Harare, Zimbabwe. Society for AIDS in Africa (SAA), the custodian of ICASA, with more than 5,000 memberships in 56 countries, is organizing ICASA 2023 in collaboration with the Government of Zimbabwe, jointly with international and local partners.

 

1. CRITERIA FOR DEVELOPING THE THEME & OBJECTIVES

• The previous ICASA 2021 theme and objectives will serve as a reference in developing the new theme and objectives for ICASA 2023
• Also, the current trends in global health, the SDGs, the 95-95-95 goal and the end of AIDS by 2030 should be factored in developing the theme and objectives of ICASA 2023
• The theme and objectives must reflect Scientific, Leadership and Community component of the new trend of HIV AIDS in Africa.
• The proposed theme should not be more than 20 words
• The objectives should not be more than 5 points

 

NB: See below the previous conference Themes

ICASA 1986 THEME: AIDS IN AFRICA

ICASA 1997 THEME: SCIENCE IN CHALLENGING AIDS

ICASA 1988 THEME: AIDS AND ASSOCIATED CANCERS IN AFRICA

ICASA 1989 THEME: EPIDEMIOLOGY OF AIDS IN AFRICA

ICASA 1990 THEME: STRUGGLE AGAINST AIDS IN AFRICA

ICASA 1992 THEME: CLEAN AND SAFE BLOOD FOR ALL

ICASA 1993 THEME: AFRICA UNITY AGAINST AIDS AND STDs

ICASA 1995 THEME: CHALLENGES AND HOPE

ICASA 1997 THEME: AIDS AND DEVELOPMENT

ICASA 1999 THEME: LOOKING INTO THE FUTURE: SETTING PRIORITIES FOR AIDS

ICASA 2001 THEME: THE COMMUNITIES COMMIT THEMSELVES

ICASA 2003 THEME: ACESS TO CARE: CHALLENGES

ICASA 2005 THEME: HIV/AIDS AND FAMI LY

ICASA 2008 THEME: AFRICA’S RESPONSE: FACE FACTS

ICASA 2011 THEME: OWN, SCALE UP AND SUSTAIN

ICASA 2013 THEME: NOW MORE THAN EVER TARGETING ZERO

ICASA 2015 THEME: AIDS IN POST 2015: LINKING LEADERSHIP, SCIENCE AND HUMAN RIGHTS

ICASA 2017 THEME: AFRICA: ENDING AIDS – DELIVERING DIFFERENTLY

ICASA 2019 THEME: AIDS-FREE AFRICA – INNOVATION, COMMUNITY, AND POLITICAL LEADERSHIP

ICASA 2021 THEME: AFRICA’S AIDS RESPONSE: THE RACE TO 2030 – EVIDENCE. SCALE UP. ACCELERATE

 

The Objectives of ICASA 2021:

1. To strengthen health systems to integrate high impact interventions on comorbidities, emerging infections and NCDs.
2. To build, strengthen and invest in Africa’s scientific capacity and manufacturing of vaccines, diagnostics, and therapeutics.
3. To Identify in Africa, resource tailored interventions for populations most affected including women, children, adolescents, men, and Key Populations.
4. To evaluate the impact of COVID-19 on the HIV/AIDS response and share lessons learned in overcoming barriers in maintaining continuity of care for people living with and at risk for HIV infection.
5. To amplify national, regional, continental, and global integration to reach epidemic control in Africa: Contributions from Africans in the Diaspora. Promote community, scientific, and technological innovations for ending AIDS.

NB: for the past, ICASA objectives, kindly refer to the SAA website: www.saafrica.org

 

 

TIMELINE FOR THE PROPOSED THEME & OBJECTIVES

The PROPOSED theme and objectives should be sent to the email below, before 10^th November 2022

Email: icasatheme@saafrica.org

The proposed themes and objectives will be finalized at the upcoming 1^st International Steering Committee (ISC) meeting. Date: 17 – 18 November 2022 in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe

Luc Armand Bodea
ICASA Director
Coordinator
Permanent Secretariat
Society for AIDS in Africa (SAA)
ICASA Organizer
Accra- Ghana
Office Direct: (+233)(0)302913739
Email: icasadirector@saafrica.org
website: http://icasa2023.saafrica.org/