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From 4 to 9 December 2023, thousands of people convened in Harare, Zimbabwe, for the 22nd International Conference on Aids and STIs in Africa (ICASA). Scientists, medical experts, advocates, people living with HIV, and civil society organizations came together under the theme “AIDS IS NOT OVER: Address inequalities; accelerate inclusion and innovation.” Participants from many faith traditions were a meaningful part of many of these representative groups but also took up a space of their own.

Prof. Ezra Chitando, World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy regional coordinator for Southern Africa, presented on behalf of WCC deputy general secretary Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri, a paper on “Women’s Transformative Leadership and Africa’s Holistic Development: The Role of the Churches” during an international conference on leadership transformation and innovation in Africa.

Religious and traditional leaders in the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) participated in online consultations on the SADC Model Law on gender-based violence.

Religious leaders are participating in online training on male engagement in Zimbabwe, 12-16 July. The participants are drawn from diverse faith communities and will come up with action plans to enhance their work with boys and men.

Religious leaders in Uganda pledged to renew their commitment to the national struggle to end HIV and AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, end all forms of stigma, promote justice, model transformative masculinities and transformative femininities, and ensure that respect for human rights is at the center of responses to HIV and AIDS.

“When the music changes, so must the dance,” counselled Prof. Dr Isabel Apawo Phiri, World Council of Churches (WCC) deputy general secretary at the Africa Association of United Methodist Theological Institutions Anglophone Group virtual conference on 9-10 April. Phiri gave a keynote address at the conference organized by Africa University, a Methodist-affiliated university in Zimbabwe.

Online training for church leaders in Zimbabwe is helping them find creative, positive theologies to navigate the many challenging facets of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stories from Uganda are underscoring the resilience and hope that churches and education can bring in the face of stigma. Programmes developed by the World Council of Churches Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy have helped people eliminate stigma associated with HIV and AIDS by providing accurate information; safe spaces in which to share; and a faith-based, science-backed approach to health and healing.

During a ceremony recognizing how young people in Uganda are true “agents of change” in health and healing, Rev. Pauline Njiru, eastern Africa regional coordinator for the World Council of Churches Ecumenical HIV & AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy programme, said young people are bringing a fresh drive for justice in many local communities.

During a workshop on 29 June-1 July, Pastor Maxwell Kapachawo summed up the inspiration driving the group: “This training has come at the right time! We are facing the challenge of people on antiretroviral therapy defaulting on their medication due to faith healing claims.”

Ayoko Bahun-Wilson is regional coordinator for West Africa for the World Council of Churches (WCC) Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy programme. She hosted a weekly radio show for churches in Benin called “Zero Rape, Zero Violence.” The show was offered in collaboration by the WCC, Deborah Network, INACES and Hosannah Radio.

Below, Bahun-Wilson reflects on how the radio show, offered every Wednesday for three months, has heightened awareness—but there are many challenges that remain.

Using lessons learned from building health-competent faith communities and responding to the HIV and AIDS epidemic, African church leaders are doing their best to help their communities cope with the novel coronavirus.

Hundreds of Christians gathered at the Namirembe Cathedral - the oldest cathedral in Uganda - and Mackay Primary School on 1 December to commemorate World AIDS Day. Through music, dance, and drama, together they spoke out for gender justice and a world free from HIV.

Young people in Uganda are on fire for change that will free the world from both HIV and sexual and gender-based violence. Spreading sparks of knowledge and enthusiasm, they have been visiting schools to inform and inspire even more young people.

From Canon Gideon Byamugisha, to newlywed couple Jemimah Ate and Opio Charles, people in Uganda are advocating to end stigma and discrimination associated with HIV.

As Makerere University in Uganda admitted new undergraduate students in August, trained “ambassadors of change" were able to speak about preventing sexual and gender-based violence and HIV transmission. The ambassadors were trained though workshops offered by the World Council of Churches Ecumenical HIV and AIDS Initiatives and Advocacy programme.

Fifty students from Ugandan universities in Uganda were educated in challenging patriarchy and sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) at a training of trainers (TOT) gathering in Kampala, Uganda.