Brasilia, 2 March 2023 - On Zero Discrimination Day this year, commemorated by the United Nations on 2 March 2023, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) in Brazil highlighted combined HIV prevention and care lines for women who use drugs. Through a digital campaign, UNAIDS and UNODC addressed themes such as access to rights, work and income, HIV and STI prevention, and harm reduction.

Conducted during the same week as International Women's Day, the campaign called on UN agencies, external organizations, and all interested people to add their voices to the Zero Discrimination campaign to raise awareness about combined prevention and lines of care. On social networks and digital channels, UNAIDS and UNODC shared videos and other visual materials. The initiative was the result of actions taken by UNODC in 2022, at national and regional level for Latin America and the Caribbean, as co-sponsor of the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and UNODC's global HIV programme.

Over the past year, UNODC Brazil held a series of meetings to promote access to services for women who use drugs. The first meeting, held at the Federal University of São Paulo (UNIFESP) from 27 to 30 June, women leaders of social movements, the academic community, governmental institutions, and international organizations were invited to discuss the barriers faced by women in accessing the network of services, especially those related to HIV care. Subsequently, UNODC Brazil, in partnership with the Oswaldo Cruz Foundation (FIORCRUZ), UNAIDS and the Brazilian Platform on Drug Policy, held the Regional Meeting

on Combined HIV Prevention and Care Lines for Women Who Use Drugs, in the city of Rio de Janeiro (RJ), on 26-27 September 2022, which aimed at broadening the discussion at the regional level. 

 

Follow the campaign for Zero Discrimination Day on UNAIDS and UNODC Brazil's Instagram.