Closure of Phase 1 of the HIV-Related Stigma Reduction Project in Togo

---

Extract from the article: The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) organized a national workshop on Wednesday, July 30, 2025, in Lomé to mark the end of Phase 1 of the project “Community Response to Stigma, Discrimination, and Legal Reform in West and Central..

---

The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has completed phase 1 of the project “Community response to stigma, discrimination, and legislative reform in West and Central Africa.” The results and impacts of the project were evaluated during a workshop on Wednesday, July 30, 2025, in Lomé. The initiative, implemented in Togo since 2022, provided an opportunity to capitalize on achievements and evaluate lessons learned in preparation for the Global Fund's reprogramming (GC7) and the upcoming request for GC8.

In her opening remarks, UNAIDS Country Director, Dr. Yayé Kanny Diallo, praised the project’s impact within a national response context aimed at removing social barriers to HIV care.

“This project came at the right time, when stigma and discrimination are recognized as real obstacles to healthcare access. Thanks to this initiative, more than 300 community actors and health workers have been trained. A visual storytelling tool was also developed to help break down social barriers to accessing HIV prevention, treatment, and testing services,” she stated.

She also emphasized the need for national authorities to take ownership of the initiative, sustain the gains, and mobilize more resources in a global context of shrinking funding.

National Reach and Tangible Results

Augustin Dokla, President of RAS+ Togo, one of the main community organizations involved, highlighted the project's geographic and human scope.

“We carried out activities in three regions – Greater Lomé, Plateaux, and Kara – reaching over 300 beneficiaries, including healthcare providers and around a hundred peer educators. The LILO (‘Look In, Look Out’) strategy proved to be a powerful tool to help people understand the lived realities of people living with HIV and key populations,” he stressed.

He also mentioned the integration of Community-Led Monitoring (CLM), a community-driven monitoring mechanism that places beneficiaries at the center of HIV project implementation and evaluation.

Ongoing Challenges and the Need to Sustain Momentum

Despite these advances, Mr. Dokla emphasized a major challenge: the rise in self-stigmatization, which calls for more nuanced and sustainable approaches.

“We have achieved extraordinary results, but human behavior is difficult to change. As long as stigma—including self-stigma—persists, our efforts must continue. The end of funding for this first phase is a painful moment, but also a call to action for partners,” he explained.

Towards Sustainable National Action

The close of this first phase marks a strategic transition for Togo. The country now has concrete evidence, best practices, and tools to guide the reprogramming of international funding and to strengthen the HIV response in an inclusive and effective manner.

All stakeholders—health authorities, civil society, and technical partners—are now called upon to turn these gains into sustainable national policies, in order to honor the collective commitment: to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030.

Raymond DZAKPATA