The 27th IUSTI World Congress will be held in Prague, Czech Republic, in 14–17 October 2026. Organized by the International Union against Sexually Transmitted Infections, the world congress will provide an opportunity to meet, discuss and learn about the latest research and innovation in sexual and reproductive health. The program will incorporate a range of world leading speakers and presentations, providing an opportunity to expand your professional knowledge through local and international insight.

The 2026 STI Prevention Conference will be held August 31 – September 2, 2026 in Atlanta, Georgia. The 2026 STI Prevention Conference comes at a moment when the STI field is being asked to do a lot at once: sustain progress, respond to new challenges, and chart a path forward in an increasingly complex environment. Convened under the theme, Forward Together: Uniting Science, Community, and Care for STI Prevention, the conference reflects both the urgency of the moment and the optimism that meaningful progress is still within reach, especially if we act collectively. 

New Approaches to End Major Epidemics

The UN high-level side-event “Accelerating progress towards ending HIV, TB, Hepatitis and Sexually Transmitted Infections: New approaches to end major epidemics,” will be held on the margins of the UN High Level Meeting on HIV. The event will be organized by the World Health Organization in collaboration with Member States and partners.

Partnership, Country and Community Leadership, and Shared Accountability

The purpose of the session is to identify how the prevention ambition of 40+20 can be delivered at scale through country-owned, community-accountable and partner-supported HIV prevention responses. The discussion will focus on how to expand access to new and existing prevention options, integrate prevention within sustainable HIV and health systems, address barriers faced by communities, and mobilise the financing and coordination needed to reach the 20 million prevention ambition by 2030.

Follow live on webtv.un.org

The International Conference on HIV Treatment, Pathogenesis, and Prevention Research (INTEREST), will take place 12-15 May in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, covering new advances in HIV prevention, treatment, cure, and vaccine research and development (R&D); implementation science; and how science is being translated into impact through an African-led HIV agenda.

AVAC has compiled resources and highlights to support participation and engagement.

AVAC Infographics

For those presenting at INTEREST (as well as anyone interested in tracking the field), AVAC’s latest infographics on the HIV R&D and delivery pipelines are available in an easy-to-use slide format – including lenacapavir for HIV PrEP (LEN) volume commitments, the current landscape of prevention options in development, and the impact of US funding cuts with new data from PEPFAR. We hope these are useful for presentations and discussions at the conference and beyond.

Join AVAC, Access Bridge and Partners at These Sessions of Interest

If you are in Dar es Salaam, be sure to join sessions in which AVAC, Access Bridge, and our partners are involved.

Posters (Wednesday, 13 May and Thursday, 14 May)

• HIV Prevention Research and Development at a Tipping Point: Insights from the 2025 People’s Research Agenda Update by AVAC’s Grace Kumwenda
  
  Identifying key priorities for the HIV prevention research agenda moving forward and informing global advocacy and engagement in R&D in response to the evolving HIV prevention landscape, including recent scientific advances and growing threats posed by funding and political disruptions.

• Getting PrEP Rollout Right This Time: Lessons from the field by Access Bridge’s Catherine Verde Hashim, presented by Wawira Nyagah
  
  Learn from experts how we can improve and accelerate PrEP introduction at every step along the product introduction pathway. Access the full report: Getting PrEP rollout right this time

• Community Led Research on HIV Treatment, Pathogenesis and Prevention among People who use Drugs in Tanzania by Kwame Juma of Tanzania Network of People Who Use Drugs (TaNPUD) and COMPASS
  
  Description forthcoming!

Mini-Oral Abstract (Friday, 15 May)

• Global Forecast of Long-Acting PrEP Need for Key Populations (2025-2030), by Catherine Verde Hashim presented Wawira Nyagah; 12:00-12:24
  
  Understand the need for long-acting PrEP amongst key populations globally and explore which countries have the highest need.

What We’re Watching

The INTEREST 2026 program includes a full list of sessions, including the following, which AVAC is tracking closely (note: all times are local Tanzanian time):

Tuesday, 12 May

• Opening session with welcome addresses from conference chairs, including AVAC Board member Nyaradzo Mgodi, 9:00-10:45
• Special Session 1: Building Africa’s End to End Vaccine R&D and Manufacturing Ecosystem: Achieve Africa’s Vision, Progress, and Roadmap to Sovereignty, 16:15- 17:00

Wednesday, 13 May

• Session 7: HIV Prevention I: Cure and Vaccine, 8:30-9:15
• Session 8: HIV Prevention II: Broadly Neutralizing Antibodies and Gene Therapy, 14:25-15:10
• Session 9: HIV Prevention III: New Prevention Technologies, with AVAC Board members Nyaradzo Mgodi and Linda-Gail Bekker, 16:35-17:20

If you are attending INTEREST 2026 and would like to connect, reach out to the AVAC and Access Bridge teams at [email protected] and [email protected]. And stay up to date on the latest news from AVAC via our newsletters or on LinkedIn.

At the SYNChronicity conference, this morning plenary session will bring together nationally recognized leaders who exemplify true synchronicity across scientific discovery, clinical practice, policy, and real-world implementation. This session will highlight how aligning drug user health, long COVID and vaccine research, care delivery, advocacy, and public health strategy accelerates meaningful impact, advances innovation, and improves outcomes — particularly for communities most affected by chronic diseases.

Speakers will provide critical updates on biomedical HIV prevention, vaccine preparedness, and current research studies shaping the prevention landscape; explore the intersections with drug user health, highlighting models that bridge treatment, harm reduction, and community-based support; discuss lessons from long COVID research and chronic disease management to draw connections to advocacy, research equity, and patient-led movements; and share insights on synchronizing policy and research with public health priorities and marginalized community needs.

Speakers: Gregorio Millett, MPH; Mitchell Warren; JD Davids; and Judith Feinberg, MD

Advocacy requires us to understand that local actions connect to broader systemic change. This plenary session at AIDSWatch will discuss the interconnected nature of advocacy at the state, national, and global levels and highlight how policies, movements, and decisions influence one another. Participants will examine the tactics of our current administration, learn how grassroots work impacts national and global efforts, and identify how we can learn from each other and collaborate as we face unprecedented threats at every level.

Speakers: Kamaria Laffrey, SERO Project; John Meade, AVAC; Joseph Stango, AIDS United; Kelly Flannery, PWN

Moderator: Liz Kaplan