**SUNDAY 17/06 PRE-AIDS2016 MEDIA TELECONFERENCE - MSF PRIORITIES, HIV STUDIES, BARRIERS TO CARE**

**SUNDAY PRE-AIDS2016 MEDIA TELECONFERENCE** Doctors Without Borders Will Outline Priorities for the International AIDS Conference, Present Ongoing HIV Projects, Studies and Barriers to Care

MSF will highlight progress made since first Durban conference in 2000 in the fight to get ahead of the HIV epidemic, gaps that persist

DATE: Sunday, July 17 from 4-5pm (South Africa time)

LOCATION: Call-in number attached (local numbers for each country), Pin: 25150624#

DETAILS: The international medical humanitarian organization Doctors Without Borders/Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) will host a media conference call before the historic International AIDS Conference kicks off. This call will offer a brief summary of what MSF will be talking about this week, including policy changes we’ve been pushing for, the lack of testing and treatment options available in certain regions like West and Central Africa, and the critical role that community engagement plays in care. We will also highlight the vast improvements we’ve seen in South Africa since 2000 thanks to affordable treatment options, along with initial findings from MSF’s innovative pilot project in rural KwaZulu Natal, 90-minute drive from the conference venue. MSF has been treating people with HIV/AIDS since the late 1990s and currently supports treatment for more than 250,000 people living with HIV in 19 countries, primarily in Africa.

SPEAKERS:

• Sharonann Lynch, HIV/AIDS Policy Advisor at MSF
• Ousseni Tiemtore, HIV/TB Advisor for MSF's Southern Africa Medical Unit
• Eric Goemaere, HIV/TB Unit Coordinator for MSF's Southern Africa Medical Unit
• Julia Hill, MSF’s Deputy Head of Mission for South Africa
• 15 minutes for questions from the media

CONTACTS:

• Brienne Prusak: +1-646-531-0754 (also on Whatsapp), [email protected]
• Kate Ribet: +27 (0) 82 852 1886 (also on Whatsapp), k[email protected]