By 
The United States government has announced the delivery of the first doses of lenacapavir, an innovative drug produced by American company Gilead Sciences, aimed at preventing the spread of HIV.
The doses, arriving in Eswatini and Zambia, are part of a market-shaping initiative by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) to rapidly introduce lenacapavir to ten high-burden HIV countries.
According to a statement issued in Lusaka on Wednesday, Jeremy Lewin, Senior Official for Foreign Assistance, Humanitarian Affairs and Religious Freedom, said lenacapavir is a twice-yearly injectable drug, with clinical trials showing more than 99 percent of participants remained HIV negative.
Lewin said the partnership, first announced on 4 September 2025 between the Department of State, Gilead Sciences, and the Global Fund to Fight HIV, Tuberculosis and Malaria, is providing at least 2 million doses at cost to targeted populations in high-burden countries.
The investment is designed to support manufacturing capacity and stimulate local demand for the medication.
“U.S. officials are on site today as the first lenacapavir doses are being delivered in Eswatini and Zambia. Given strong demand and progress in scaling manufacturing, we expect to surpass the 2 million dose commitment by the targeted delivery date in 2028,” Lewin said.
He explained that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approved lenacapavir on 18 June 2025 for HIV prevention, and the delivery in high-burden countries follows the September partnership—just five months after FDA approval—a new benchmark for rapid access to innovative therapies in developing countries.
Lewin highlighted the drug’s potential to protect pregnant and breastfeeding mothers, preventing mother-to-child HIV transmission.
“The Department expects lenacapavir to be an important tool in achieving the Administration’s goal of ending mother-to-child transmission of HIV during President Trump’s second term,” he said.
He added that under the America First Global Health Strategy, the Department of State is establishing a first-of-its-kind innovation fund to support American-led research, market-shaping initiatives, and other advancements in global health.
“Through our America First Global Health Strategy, the Trump Administration is making targeted and high-impact investments in breakthrough health innovations like lenacapavir that will bend the curve of the HIV epidemic and help countries globally to break away from reliance on external health assistance,” Lewin said.
WARNING! All rights reserved. This material, and other digital content on this website, may not be reproduced, published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed in whole or in part without prior express permission from ZAMBIA MONITOR.
Comments