The government, through the Ministry of Health (MOH), has started offering drugs to HIV-negative men who irregularly engage in sex to prevent them from getting infected with the virus.
Known as Event-Driven Pre-Exposure Prophylaxis (ED-PrEP), the program is targeted at men who have infrequent sexual encounters and are at substantial risk of contracting HIV.
Dr. Herbert Kadama, the PrEP coordinator at the Ministry of Health, revealed that the ED-PrEP initiative was first piloted in September last year, involving 841 men. Participants are instructed to take two oral PrEP tablets at least two hours before engaging in sexual activity and then continue with one tablet daily for two days after the sexual encounter.
Kadama emphasized that this approach has proven to be both acceptable and convenient, particularly for men who have visiting girlfriends or occasional sexual partners. By April, the program had attracted up to 4,000 participants, providing men with an additional HIV prevention option that doesn’t require continuous use.
Despite Uganda’s current HIV prevalence rate of 5.1 percent, which is lower among men at 4.3 percent, healthcare providers face challenges in ensuring that infected men begin and adhere to treatment. This adherence is crucial for viral load suppression and overall public health.
Dr. Daniel Byamukama, who heads HIV prevention at the Uganda AIDS Commission (UAC), highlighted the significance of this new prevention method. He noted that reducing HIV infections among men could also indirectly lower infection rates among young women, as men often hold more decision-making power regarding sexual activity.
According to UAC figures, HIV incidence remains high among men, with 11,000 new infections reported last year. Alarmingly, 34 percent of surveyed men in 2023 admitted to having sex with someone who was neither their wife nor a live-in partner, compared to only 10 percent of women.
Byamukama expressed concern over the low uptake of other male HIV prevention methods. For example, only 3 percent of men in multiple sexual relationships reported using a condom during their most recent sexual encounter. Additionally, while voluntary medical male circumcision has been scientifically proven to reduce HIV infection risk by up to 60 percent, the uptake remains low, with only 56 percent of men circumcised since 2010.
From 2010 to date, about six million men have been circumcised, representing 56 percent.
