• Liz Martin, HIV Activist

Author of “Still Standing: An Irish Woman’s story of HIV and Hope. Liz is a mother of four, who has been living with HIV for the past 30 years. During this time, Liz has worked tirelessly challenging HIV related stigma and discrimination. Today she continues to raise awareness of HIV and AIDS in Ireland and overseas, bringing hope to others who feel they have no voice. 

• Dr Ailbhe Smyth

Ailbhe Smyth is a long-time campaigner on feminist, LGBTI+ and socialist issues. The founding head of Women’s Studies at University College Dublin, she has published widely on feminism, politics and culture.  She chaired the National Lesbian and Gay Federation (NXF) for several years, and is a board member of Women’s Aid, and also of Age Action, and is co-founder and Convenor of the Coalition to Repeal the 8^th Amendment. She chairs the board of Ballyfermot STAR Addiction Services.

Ailbhe was a Strategic Executive member of the Yes Equality (equal marriage) campaign in 2015. She has been fighting for women’s right to choose since the 1980s and was Co-Director of the Together for Yes national referendum campaign in 2018. She was named as one of Time Magazine’s 100 Most Influential People in 2019 for her work in repealing the 8^th Amendment.  Ailbhe is a regular contributor to media and national debate on feminist and LGBTQ issues.

Prof. Sheila Tlou is Co-Chair of the Global HIV Prevention Coalition, Special Ambassador for the African Leaders Malaria Alliance, Champion of the Nursing Now Challenge, Trustee to the Board of the Florence Nightingale Foundation (FNF), and Advisory Board member for the Harvard Global Nursing Leadership Program.

She is former UNAIDS Regional Director and former Minister of Health of Botswana, where she led a comprehensive HIV/AIDS program that is still a model in Africa. She is Professor Emerita of the University of Botswana and former Director of the WHO Collaborating Centre for Nursing and Midwifery Development in Primary Health Care.

As UNAIDS Regional Director, Prof. Tlou provided leadership and Political Advocacy for a sustainable AIDS response in 21 African countries. She holds a PhD in Nursing Sciences from the University of Illinois at Chicago., a Masters in Nursing Education from Columbia University, and a Master of Science in Nursing from the Catholic University of America. She has many publications on Human Rights and HIV/AIDS, and has received over 30 international awards for Leadership in Global Health, among them Botswana Presidential Order of Honor, Princess Srinagarindra award from Thailand, Christianne Reimann award from International Council of Nurses, and Princess Muna Al Hussein award from American Nurses Credentialing Centre. She is United Nations Eminent Person for Women, Girls, and HIV/AIDS in Southern Africa.

Zvandiri Youth Choir in Zimbabwe and the SpeakUp SingOut SUSO Youth Choir in County Kildare.

This video was launched as part of the Irish Aid Professor Father Michael Kelly HIV Lecture, December 1 – 2020. This track is the result of an international collaboration project between Zvandiri Youth Choir and SUSO Youth Choir.

Original song by Eimear Video produced by Eimear Crehan (www.speakupsingout.ie) Video edited by Jamie Crehan ([email protected])

Keynote Speaker:

Winnie Byanyima, UNAIDS Executive Director

Winnie Byanyima is the Executive Director of UNAIDS and an Under-Secretary-General of the United Nations. A passionate and longstanding champion of social justice and gender equality, Ms Byanyima leads the United Nations’ efforts to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030. Ms Byanyima believes that health care is a human right and was an early champion of a People’s Vaccine against the coronavirus that is available and free of charge to everyone, everywhere. Before joining UNAIDS, Ms Byanyima served as the Executive Director of Oxfam International, a confederation of 20 civil society organizations working in more than 90 countries worldwide, empowering people to create a future that is secure, just and free from poverty.

Ms Byanyima was elected for three terms and served 11 years in the parliament of her country, Uganda. She led Uganda’s first parliamentary women’s caucus, championing ground-breaking gender equality provisions in the county’s 1995 post-conflict constitution.

Ms Byanyima led the establishment of the African Union Commission’s Directorate of Gender and Development and also served as Director of Gender and Development at the United Nations Development Programme. She founded the Forum for Women in Democracy, an influential Ugandan nongovernmental organization, and has been deeply involved in building global and African coalitions on social justice issues. A global leader on inequality, Ms Byanyima has co-chaired the World Economic Forum and served on the World Bank’s Advisory Council on Gender and Development, the International Labour Organization’s Global Commission on the Future of Work and the Global Commission on Adaptation. Ms Byanyima is a recipient of several awards, including an honorary doctorate from the University of Manchester, United Kingdom, an honorary doctorate from Mount Saint Vincent University, Canada, and the 2018 Human Rights and Solidarity among Peoples Prize, awarded by the Latin American Council of Social Sciences.

Panellists 

• Prof. Sheila Tlou

In this video, former speakers from the lecture series speak about HIV Stigma and Discrimination, and pay tribute to Professor Father Michael Kelly (1929 -2021).

• To pay tribute to Father Michael Kelly’s ongoing legacy, the IGHN has produced a compilation of lectures and presentations entitled: From Zambia to Ireland: 15 Years of Insights on HIV and AIDS from 2006-2020. DOWNLOAD SPECIAL EVENT PUBLICATION.

The Irish Aid Annual Father Michael Kelly Lecture is held annually to coincide with World AIDS Day as a reminder of the outstanding work and rich legacy of Fr Kelly’s life and work. The dedication of this annual event in his name is an indication of our regard for his contribution to the global response to HIV and AIDS.

The death of Professor Fr. Michael Kelly at the age of 91, in January of this year was a watershed moment for those devoted to combatting the HIV and AIDS pandemic in Zambia, Ireland and beyond. Father Michael witnessed first-hand the devastating impact of HIV and AIDS and made a tremendous contribution to tackling HIV in Africa.

For over 50 years, Tullamore-born Professor Father Michael J. Kelly worked tirelessly in the fight against HIV/AIDS in his naturalised country of Zambia, and internationally, spreading the message of strength, dignity, and hope for those affected and at risk.

Through his work with Irish Aid and several multilateral organisations in his adopted home of Zambia, Father Michael was regarded as a true visionary and an inspirational figure to health workers, aid workers, humanitarians, and diplomats from across the globe.

The panel discussion included:

Ruairí de Búrca, Director General, Irish Aid at Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade – Ireland 

Marijke Wijnroks,  Chief of Staff, Office of the Executive Director, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – Switzerlan

Saidy Brown, HIVictor – South Africa

Scroll down the page to view the biographies of the three panelists.

The panel discussion is featured on the video below:

• Ruairí de Búrca, Director General, Irish Aid at Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade – Ireland 

Ruairí  has led the Division charged with managing the Irish Aid development cooperation programme since 2017.  In this capacity, he advises on the most effective and efficient policy options for the delivery of Ireland’s international development goals, including humanitarian aid.  He represents Irish positions on development matters in international fora, including the EU and UN. 

He leads the team responsible for the timely and prudential delivery of Ireland’s development cooperation.  He also leads on Ireland’s bilateral relationship with Africa, including political and economic relations with the countries of that continent

• Marijke Wijnroks,  Chief of Staff, Office of the Executive Director, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – Switzerland

Marijke Wijnroks became Chief of Staff at the Global Fund in 2013. From June 2017 through February 2018, she served as Interim Executive Director. Her distinguished career includes more than 30 years of experience in global health and development, serving in government, at the United Nations and in civil society, and working in Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe. Marijke Wijnroks,  Chief of Staff, Office of the Executive Director, The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria – Switzerland

• Saidy Brown, HIVictor – South Africa

Saidy is a 24 year-old young lady born with HIV. She has been a strong advocate for HIV and used her status to educate other people via social media. She works with various NGOs, such as Y+ South Africa and Network for Young People Living with HIV in South Africa. 

• Saidy Brown, HIVictor – South Africa

Saidy is a 24 year-old young lady born with HIV. She has been a strong advocate for HIV and used her status to educate other people via social media. She works with various NGOs, such as Y+ South Africa and Network for Young People Living with HIV in South Africa. 

• To pay tribute to Father Michael Kelly’s ongoing legacy, the IGHN has produced a compilation of lectures and presentations from 2006-2015, entitled HIV & AIDS – A Deep Human Concern. Download it here.

For over 50 years, Tullamore-born Professor Father Michael J. Kelly has worked tirelessly in the fight against HIV/AIDS in his naturalised country of Zambia, and internationally, spreading the message of strength, dignity, and hope for those affected and at risk.

Much has been learned about the response to the COVID-19 pandemic from years of experience in dealing with HIV and AIDS, both in terms of community engagement and leadership. 

With higher risks of infection for people in certain groups, including in healthcare settings and among vulnerable groups, learnings about HIV stigma, testing, treatment and prevention programmes can all be leveraged as we join in solidarity in the face of this global pandemic. 

It is important to remember that HIV and AIDS has not gone away. And more than ever, we must call on all communities to redouble efforts so that the progress thus far achieved is not eroded. An important learning of the HIV response is that it a true global health challenge, that like COVID-19 does not recognise borders.  

We will hear from speakers in Ethiopia, South Africa, Ireland and Switzerland – speakers this year will come from a variety of backgrounds, but all have one goal in common – solidarity in the face of HIV in their communities.