Friday, 14 June 2024, (PANCAP Coordinating Unit, CARICOM Secretariat): The Pan Caribbean Partnership Against HIV and AIDS (PANCAP) had the honour of hosting Dr. Meg Doherty, the World Health Organization (WHO) Director for Global HIV, Hepatitis, and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STIs). Dr. Doherty’s visit to Guyana, part of her Caribbean tour from June 12-14, 2024, was aimed at strengthening collaborations in the region’s health sector.

During the meeting, Dr. Doherty expressed her enthusiasm for understanding PANCAP’s work more deeply and exploring avenues for future collaborations. She highlighted the importance of regional cooperation in addressing public health challenges and emphasized the WHO’s commitment to supporting the region through collaboration with the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO).

The Director of PANCAP, Dr. Wendy Telgt Emanuelson, provided an overview of PANCAP and its initiatives, including testimonials from partners who have worked with PANCAP. This was followed by Dr. Shanti Singh-Anthony’s presentation on strategies used to strengthen the region’s response to managing sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The meeting focused on identifying opportunities to integrate Viral Hepatitis and STIs into the regional HIV agenda, aiming to formulate strategies to eliminate these diseases as public health threats, in alignment with global health goals.

The discussions covered various methods to seamlessly integrate Viral Hepatitis and STIs management into existing HIV programs and the development of comprehensive health strategies that address multiple diseases simultaneously for more effective public health outcomes.

The visit of Dr. Meg Doherty to PANCAP was highly productive and underscored the value of regional and international collaboration in public health. The discussions laid a strong foundation for future partnerships aimed at integrating Viral Hepatitis and STIs into the regional HIV agenda. This collaborative effort is expected to significantly contribute to the elimination of these diseases as public health threats in the Caribbean. The discussions were also very timely as PANCAP prepares for the development of its new Caribbean Regional Strategic Framework (CRSF), which will include strategies proven to be successful in reaching the 95-95-95 targets set for 2030.

The WHO delegation, led by Dr. Meg Doherty, included Monica Alonso, Unit Chief of the HIV/STI & VH Unit at PAHO Washington DC; Carlos Cisneros, Technical Officer for Strategic Initiatives, Partnerships, and Country Support at WHO; and Sandra Jones, Advisor for HIV/STI, VH, and TB at the PAHO/WHO Caribbean Office.

Accompanying Dr. Wendy Telgt Emanuelson were Dr. Shanti Singh-Anthony, Coordinator of Knowledge Management (PCU); Dr. Shellon Bovell, Project Manager for the Office of the Principal Recipient, Global Fund – CARICOM Secretariat; and Mr. Collin Kirton, Senior Accountant (PCU).