Policy makers, implementers, civil society members, advocates and researchers assembled in Amsterdam on 21 July 2018, to participate in the STRIVE pre-conference session at AIDS2018. The ambitious programme, which synthesised 7 years of evidence on the structural drivers of HIV, was structured around two key panel discussions:

1. Addressing structural drivers in order to achieve the sustainable development goals
2. Addressing structural drivers in the delivery of comprehensive HIV prevention programmes

The opening address was given by Catherine Sozi, Director UNAIDS Regional Support Team, Eastern & Southern Africa on the importance of tackling structural drivers of HIV, especially for adolescent girls and young women.

Mitzy Gafos, STRIVE's co-research director, gave an overview of STRIVE's work to tackle the structural drivers of HIV.

STRIVE researchers Katherine Fritz, Ravi Prakash, Parinita Bhattacharjee, Saidi Kapiga gave a presentation on how STRIVE’s conceptual approach to understanding and intervening on structural drivers of HIV can be used to formulate strategies for achieving the SDGs.

The presentation draws on programmatic evidence about:

• Co-financing: an innovate solution to increase efficiency in funding allocation
• Samata: an intervention to increase secondary education and reduce child marriage
• Samvedena Plus: an intervention to reduce intimate partner violence among sex workers
• MAISHA: an intervention to reduce intimate partner violence among women

Sinead Delany-Moretlwe gave a presentation on structural factors and the HIV prevention and treatment cascade, using examples from STRIVE studies on:

• Transactional sex and youth
• Alcohol availability and youth
• Addressing stigma in universal test and treat programmes
• EMPOWER: integrating GBV screening into combination HIV prevention programmes

The STRIVE report about the event is being finalised. Check back here soon.