The power of partnership is the heart of HIV advocacy. For decades, AVAC has built partnerships based on a shared vision of African-led advocacy for global health to ensure critical research continues, products move more quickly through the pipeline and access is more equitable across communities. In 2025, AVAC’s work with partners reflected that vision, advancing the field in critical ways through collaborative efforts.
AVAC has worked to re-center advocacy leadership in Africa through decades of global collaboration and investment: the AVAC Advocacy Fellows program mentored nearly 100 Fellows over 18 years, achieved powerful advocacy wins and built a new generation of civil society advocates. In 2025, the latest group of Fellows advanced HIV cure research, scaled up U=U, expanded access to prevention products and services, and strengthened pandemic prevention efforts. As civil society organizations carry mentorship work into 2026 and beyond, the future of leadership in HIV research and prevention advocacy is stronger, more sustainable and closely aligned with community needs.
Yvette Raphael, Executive Director of APHA, speaking at the World Health Summit highlighting the importance of community-led responses in effective HIV prevention advocacy.
In 2025, the Coalition to Build Momentum, Power, Activism, Strategy and Solidarity (COMPASS)-Africa, a global coalition focused on influencing HIV policy decisions, programs and funding, completed the first year of leadership under an African-led Secretariat—Pangaea Zimbabwe. This transition from AVAC to Pangaea, based on a foundational commitment from AVAC to power-sharing and a multi-year transition plan with coordination and buy-in from across the coalition, carries forward the coalition’s vision of regional leadership and sustainability of advocacy movements. Similarly, over nine years of impactful collaboration and advocacy before it was halted in February 2025 during the foreign assistance freeze, the Coalition to Accelerate and Support Prevention Research (CASPR)—an African-led advocacy coalition focused on advancing biomedical HIV prevention research and access—contributed to increased community engagement in research and strengthened African advocacy leadership in the HIV response.
2024—2025 Advocacy Fellows cohort (from top, left): Bahati Thomas Haule, Mokone Rantsoeleba, Elina Mwasinga, Samuel Anyula Gorigo, Ezra Meme, Rhoda Msiska, and Pamela Fuzile
AVAC and partners, built on the foundational work of the Fellows program, COMPASS and CASPR, continue to advance and realize this shared vision of partnership and the future of African-led advocacy. A coalition of partners began to jointly establish a framework for this future, focusing on building an advocacy institute to sustain HIV prevention advocacy leadership in Africa. In 2026, this coalition will focus on building out this model, identifying the most effective ways to collaborate and advance a shared vision for African-led advocacy for global health.
Map showing AVAC Fellow Alumni representation in 13 African countries, with alumni founding or leading 17 organizations in seven countries.
“Investing in African-led advocacy has never been more important. HIV prevention advocates came together to create an institute that meets the moment—ensuring advocates build a new global health architecture with communities at the center, and that breakthroughs like LEN turn into real-world impact for communities who need them most.”