From 17th to 19th January 2023, KELIN participated in a workshop of technical stakeholders convened to review and compile comments on the Kenyan HIV and AIDS Prevention and Control Act (HAPCA), 2006. The Ministry of Health had in 2022 commenced the process of amending HAPCA and requested members of the public for comments and submissions to improve HAPCA.
In response to this call, KELIN jointly with the Key Populations Consortium and Esther Nelima, a community health advocate, made substantive proposals to the Ministry of Health to harmonize HAPCA with provisions of the East African Community HIV and AIDS Prevention and Management Act 2012 (EAC HAPMA).
During the three-day workshop, KELIN advocated for harmonization of provisions of HAPCA with those of the more progressive and rights based EAC HAPMA. For instance, when HAPCA was enacted in 2006 there was a focus on the prevention of HIV transmission. However today, certain provisions of the law, such as Section 24 which was declared unconstitutional serve no purpose and instead undermine HIV prevention efforts by discouraging people from testing and disclosing their HIV status.
“The EAC HIV and AIDS Prevention and Management Act of 2012 does not contain provisions that criminalize people living with HIV. We see a better approach in that Act to HIV treatment and prevention. As a community health champion, I would like to see HAPCA reviewed to be more progressive and to promote and protect rights of people living with and affected by HIV.” Esther Nelima, community health advocate
Through harmonization of the provisions, HAPCA would benefit from expounded provisions to protect and promote the human rights of people living with and affected by HIV. The EAC HAPMA[1] was enacted by the East Africa Legislative Assembly in 2012 and assented to by Heads of States.
KELIN shall continue to monitor and contribute to the HAPCA review process with an aim of promoting and strengthening and enabling legal and policy environment on HIV programming as well as ensuring the same is rights based and gender transformative.
Read KELIN’s Joint Submissions here: HAPCA-PUBLIC-COMMENTS-FORM_KELIN-KENYA-.pdf (kelinkenya.org)
To contribute to the discussions on this forum, follow KELIN on our social media platforms: Twitter: @KELINkenya using these hash tags: #EAC_HIVACT Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/kelinkenya
For more information, contact:
Timothy Wafula
Programme Manager, HIV/TB and Key & Affected Populations
Kenya Legal and Ethical Issues Network on HIV/AIDS (KELIN)
Kuwinda Lane, off Langata Road, Karen C
P O Box 112 – 00202 KNH Nairobi
E-mail: twafula@kelinkenya.org
[1]The EAC HAPMA is an act of the East Africa Community and has force of law in Kenya. Section 8 of the Treaty for the Establishment of the East African Community Act, (Act No. 2 of 2000, Laws of Kenya) provides that:
- The provisions of any Act of the Community shall, from the date of publication of that Act in the Gazette of the Community, have the force of law in Kenya.
- An Act of the Community shall come into operation on the date of its publication in the Gazette of the Community or, if it is provided in that Act that some or all of its provisions shall come into operation on some other date (whether before or after the date of publication), those provisions shall come into operation on that other date.
