Industry Liaison Forum
The Industry Liaison Forum was established in 2001 to promote and facilitate the full contribution of the biomedical industry to the global HIV response. It does this by catalysing multi-stakeholder dialogue, engagement and action to address barriers along the HIV prevention, diagnosis and care continuum. Its members are from industry (originator and generic biopharmaceutical, diagnostic and other health-technology companies) and non-industry organizations. They share a wealth of perspectives, expertise and knowledge to contribute together to the HIV response.
The Forum’s strategic plan for 2020-2023 highlights its commitment to further build on its unique neutrality, convening power, multi-stakeholder composition and rules of engagement to strengthen its contribution to the HIV response. To achieve this, it:
- Engages and grows membership by continuing to be a cross-stakeholder, neutral, safe-space platform that actively expands and engages its membership base to foster connections, dialogue and action.
- Accelerates priority areas by addressing barriers along the HIV prevention, diagnosis and care continuum.
- Publishes and promotes members’ perspectives to advance the global HIV response.
Interested in joining? Please contact ilf@iasociety.org.
Case Studies
Case study 1: Exploring long-acting solutions for mothers and newborns
In 2022, our roundtable discussions on long-acting technologies had a wide impact; over 5,100 participants accessed roundtable resources, and they led to two articles in the JIAS supplement, “Advancing LAED HIV prevention and treatment regimens”. As these technologies advance, the group identified a new challenge: meeting the specific needs of pregnant and breastfeeding people and newborns, particularly in resource-limited settings. The Forum’s session at IAS 2023, “Advancing HIV care for mothers and newborns through long-acting solutions”, addressed obstacles in developing and implementing long-acting HIV prevention and treatment options for mothers and newborns and shared experiences and best practices. The session drew 200 participants, generating remarkable engagement: 15,957 impressions and 406 interactions on social media.
Case study 2: Reaching the 95-95-95 targets
The Forum brought together 200 virtual participants in a three-part roundtable series to explore challenges and solutions on industry’s contribution to achieving the 95 targets by 2025. Insights from these discussions led to the creation of a guidance document, “Key considerations to reach the 95-95-95 targets”, emphasizing the importance of collaboration, evidence-based interventions and focused strategies for industry, policy makers, healthcare professionals and community organizations involved in the global HIV response. The document is available here.
Photo © Isabel Corthier/MSF
Case study 3: WHO Prequalification of In Vitro Diagnostics
In 2018, Forum industry partners published a perspective on World Health Organization (WHO) Prequalification of In Vitro Diagnostics in Clinical Infectious Diseases. In 2022, the Forum coordinated a roundtable discussion with representatives of regulatory and normative agencies, as well as the diagnostics and pharmaceutical industry, to introduce the newly published WHO collaborative procedure. This is a tool for national regulatory authorities that wish to enhance their pre-marketing and post-registration evaluation and registration of in vitro diagnostics. To access the roundtable materials, click here.
Case study 4: The GAP-f
The Global Accelerator for Paediatric Formulations (GAP-f) resulted from collaboration between members of the Forum, the IAS Collaborative Initiative for Paediatric HIV Education and Research (CIPHER) and WHO. Forum corporate partners working with international stakeholders steered the agenda and efforts to create GAP-f.
Meet the Forum members
Co-chairs
Civil Society members
Rahab Mwaniki
Industry members
Helen McDowell
Mehan Barathlall
Samuel (Tony) Boova
Silas Holland
Non-industry members
Boniface Dongmo Nguimfack
Catherine Hankins
Colleen Daniels
Elliot P Cowan
Ray Corrin
Sandra Nobre
Yodit Belew
Ex-officio – International AIDS Society
Birgit Poniatowski
Carole Beilleau
Julieta Firmat
Nelli Barrière
