Aids and Rights Alliance for Southern Africa

In 2022, ARASA culminated in the development of a new Five-Year Strategic Plan for 2023-2028, focusing on Increased Capacity, Coordination and Accountability (ICCA) for Equality. [...] The organisation contributed to a joint submission to the draft rules of procedure and was part of the technical group on states reporting which made recommendations aimed at ensuring that civil society has access to their state reports in advance. [...] ARASA Annual Report 202217 Page A linkage was made with the UNDP Young KP programme, and this relationship will continue in a bid to strengthen visibility of key populations in the region. [...] More work needed to be done in respect to understanding what self-care is, further there was a lack of advocacy for self-care at the national level and it is focused on the health care facilities level. [...] The direction and control of ARASA, including its business and affairs, was vested in the Board as a whole. [...] The exercise helped to identify staff development capacity gaps, gaps in policies and the importance of a frequently updated risk matrix. [...] The presentation to the NAC Directors was on barriers and progress on key commitments in the region. [...] The workshop focused on the role of NHRIs in the promotion and protection of the rights to BAI. [...] The theme of the conference was “Reshaping, Replanning and Recommitting” to the youth agenda in Southern Africa. [...] ARASA together with the University of Johannesburg were invited to lead a conversation on “The analysis of bodily autonomy and integrity and gender equity in Southern Africa.” The session was attended by over 50 conference delegates who were predominantly young.