Geneva – Migrants, refugees, internally displaced persons, as well as mobile and crisis-affected populations living with HIV must have equitable access to COVID-19 vaccines, said the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM).
Mobile populations are often more vulnerable to diseases, such as COVID-19 and HIV. Furthermore, people living with and/or affected by HIV and migrants often experience significant inequalities. They frequently face health risks due to sometimes dangerous migration processes, poor living conditions, hazardous working conditions, as well as a general lack of information, stigma, discrimination, and isolation. Migrants and displaced persons also face numerous administrative, financial, geographic, social, and cultural barriers to accessing regular or continuous healthcare across borders, including access to HIV treatment.
During the pandemic, in a context of rising xenophobia and discrimination, some migrants living with HIV faced a triple stigma related to testing positive for COVID-19, having a positive HIV status, and being a migrant—all of which often have serious negative consequences for their mental health. For many migrants and displaced people living with HIV and other autoimmune diseases, or at risk of contracting HIV, exposure to risk increased while the availability of HIV services decreased.
“To end inequalities and put the global response to HIV on track to achieve the 2030 goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat, we must act immediately to reduce the inequalities experienced by migrants and mobile populations. This includes full access to HIV prevention and treatment services and COVID-19 vaccines,” said Winnie Byanyima, Executive Director of UNAIDS, ahead of the 48th Meeting of the UNAIDS Programme Coordinating Board, which will take place next week in Geneva, Switzerland. The meeting will feature a report on the progress of HIV-related services for migrant and mobile populations, as well as for refugees and crisis-affected populations.
“Both the global response to AIDS and the response to COVID-19 are leaving millions of people behind, including many migrants and forcibly displaced persons,” said IOM Director General António Vitorino. “We have seen that neglecting the health needs of marginalized groups can be devastating for communities. Together, all countries must commit to ensuring this never happens again.”
On June 8, the United Nations General Assembly adopted the 2021 Political Declaration on HIV and AIDS , which specifically mentions migrants, refugees, and internally displaced persons, and commits governments to ensuring that “95 percent of people living with, at risk of, and affected by HIV are protected against pandemics, including COVID-19.” To mitigate and treat COVID-19 and HIV, it is essential to maintain high standards of healthcare and health protection, along with sharing widely available and accessible information.
IOM and UNAIDS urgently urge governments to take concrete steps to ensure that national COVID-19 vaccination campaigns include all migrants with comorbidities such as HIV, in accordance with WHO prioritization recommendations, and that every effort is made to remove the barriers that many still face in accessing health services, including stigma and discrimination.
The two organizations, which have been formal partners since 2011, are expanding their long-standing partnership to address the multiple forms of exclusion faced by migrants, refugees, crisis-affected people and other mobile populations living with HIV, and are ready to support countries in their efforts to recover from COVID-19 and the global commitment to end AIDS by 2030, through equitable and inclusive health programs in line with the principles of universal health coverage.