Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), also known as Doctors Without Borders, has intensified its global campaign calling on pharmaceutical giant Gilead Sciences to make lenacapavir available in all low- and middle-income countries for no more than US$40 per person annually.
For Africa, where HIV continues to place enormous pressure on public health systems and communities, the stakes could not be higher.
Lenacapavir represents one of the most significant advances in HIV prevention in decades. Unlike conventional pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) tablets that require daily use, lenacapavir is administered as an injection only twice a year while offering almost 100 per cent protection against HIV infection.
The simplified treatment schedule could dramatically improve adherence, particularly for people who struggle to take daily medication because of stigma, distance from healthcare facilities or unstable living conditions.
Across many African countries, where access to healthcare remains uneven, a twice-yearly injection could transform HIV prevention.
Fewer clinic visits would reduce travel costs, ease pressure on overstretched health services and enable healthcare workers to reach more vulnerable communities, including young women, sex workers and people living in humanitarian or conflict settings.
Despite its promise, MSF argues that the medicine remains beyond the reach of most people because of its price and restricted availability.
While Gilead reportedly charges about US$28,000 per patient annually in the United States, independent estimates suggest it could be manufactured for under US$40 per person each year.
MSF says limiting production and licensing threatens to repeat the painful history of unequal access to life-saving HIV medicines, when millions in Africa waited years before affordable antiretroviral treatment became available.
The organisation is urging governments to use international legal mechanisms, including compulsory licensing under World Trade Organization rules, if necessary, to overcome patent barriers and allow wider production of affordable generic versions.
For Africa, the debate extends beyond one medicine. It raises broader questions about health equity, pharmaceutical justice and whether scientific breakthroughs should benefit only wealthy nations or everyone.
If affordable access can be secured, lenacapavir could mark a decisive turning point in Africa’s long fight against HIV/AIDS, bringing the continent closer to ending new HIV infections and safeguarding future generations.
