7 February 2023 (Geneva, Switzerland) – IAS – the International AIDS Society – announced today that HIVR4P, the 5th HIV Research for Prevention Conference, previously set to take place in October 2023 in Lima, Peru, will now take place in the same city from 6 to 10 October 2024.
Organizers have postponed the conference due to the political crisis in Peru, which started in December 2022 and has escalated with violent demonstrations and civil unrest in the capital, Lima, and across the country.
"A stable and safe environment is paramount to the success of our scientific convenings,” IAS President Sharon Lewin said. “After seeking counsel from local leaders in HIV research and advocacy in Peru, we, as the conference co-chairs and with the Latin American representatives of our Governing Council, decided to postpone this year’s HIVR4P until 2024. Holding this conference in Peru is important to our members and we hope to conduct a successful event in Lima in 2024.”
“While we considered converting the conference to a virtual-only format or shifting the conference location within the Latin America and the Caribbean region, the IAS remains committed to holding the in-person elements of HIVR4P in Peru,” Beatriz Grinsztejn, IAS President-Elect, said.
The IAS selected Lima as the HIVR4P host city to highlight Peru’s excellence and experience in HIV prevention science while focusing on growing vulnerabilities and epidemics in the region. That consideration has not changed.
“Hosting this global conference would boost local and regional prevention efforts and ultimately improve the lives of people who are most vulnerable to acquiring HIV,” Jorge Sánchez, HIVR4P Organizing Committee member, said. “Peru has a lot of experience in HIV prevention science which other countries in the region can learn from and build on.”
Registration launch and abstract submission deadlines for HIVR4P 2024 will be announced in the coming months.
The IAS will extend previous deadlines and invite authors who planned to submit abstracts to HIVR4P this year to instead submit their abstracts to IAS 2023, the 12th IAS Conference on HIV Science, during the late-breaker submission period, from 20 April to 10 May 2023. IAS 2023 takes place in Brisbane, Australia, and virtually from 23 to 26 July 2023.
Media contact: media@iasociety.org
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About the International AIDS Society
IAS – the International AIDS Society – convenes, educates and advocates for a world in which HIV no longer presents a threat to public health and individual well-being. After the emergence of HIV and AIDS, concerned scientists created the IAS to bring together experts from across the world and disciplines to promote a concerted HIV response. Today, the IAS and its members unite scientists, policy makers and activists to galvanize the scientific response, build global solidarity and enhance human dignity for all those living with and affected by HIV. The IAS also hosts the world’s most prestigious HIV conferences: the International AIDS Conference, the IAS Conference on HIV Science and the HIV Research for Prevention Conference.
About HIVR4P, the HIV Research for Prevention Conference
The HIV Research for Prevention Conference is the only global scientific conference focused exclusively on the challenging and fast-growing field of HIV prevention research. This conference fosters interdisciplinary knowledge exchange on HIV vaccines, microbicides, PrEP, treatment as prevention and biomedical interventions, as well as their social and behavioural implications. HIVR4P 2024, the 5th HIV Research for Prevention Conference, will take place in Lima, Peru, and virtually from 6 to 10 October 2024 and is expected to bring together around 1,500 participants. For more information, please visit https://iasociety.org/conferences/HIVR4P2024.
About the state of HIV in Peru and Latin America
It is estimated that more than 90,000 people are living with HIV in Peru and about 2.1 million people are living with HIV across Latin America. Latin America has deep inequalities and its progress against HIV has stalled in recent years. Of the estimated 100,000 HIV acquisitions in the region in 2020, 92% were among members of key populations and their sexual partners, a sign that HIV prevention programmes are not adequately serving populations most vulnerable to acquiring HIV.