Organization: Partners for Relief and Development Organization (PARDO)
Region: Africa
Nationality: Cameroon
Country: Cameroon
Interests & expertise: Community leadership
Profession or occupation: Advocate/activist
What inspires you to work in the HIV field?
In 2003, a direct family member was diagnosed with HIV. I took her to many hospitals for confirmation and made inquiries at community level. Seeing that the government and private health institutions were providing limited or no communication about the epidemic and developing policy documents that did not reach the common person, I decided to engage in HIV prevention activism.
In 2007, HIV and AIDS became my doorway into public health; I volunteered with a USAID-funded HIV and AIDS project during my postgraduate studies, where I taught basics about HIV prevention in communities in South Africa. In 2009, with like-minded volunteers, I founded CADFIN, now called PARDO, dedicated to empowering individuals and communities to liberate themselves from HIV and AIDS.
What are your goals as an IAS change maker?
The HIV pandemic remains a long-term development challenge globally. My goals as an IAS change maker are to continue mobilizing for routine population-wide HIV screening, early linkage and long-term retention in healthcare for people living with HIV. These are key nodes of the HIV continuum of care and essential elements of national and global HIV and AIDS strategies. I work with community coalitions to address structural barriers that hinder people in their communities from being tested for HIV or linked and engaged in healthcare after a positive diagnosis.
In addition, I think it is time for a revolution to enhance the involvement of people living with HIV and affected communities in HIV cure-focused science. I intend to advocate for increased opportunities to interact with leading researchers and advocates in the HIV cure field with a view to expanding the network of advocates working on an HIV cure in Cameroon and Africa.