Suubi4PrEP

Suubi4PrEP (2025-2029)

Suubi4PrEP: Improving PrEP Access and Adherence Among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in Uganda.

Principal Investigators: Proscovia Nabunya, PhD; Juliet Iwelunmor, PhD; Fred M. Ssewamala, PhD (New York University);  Noeline Nakasujja, PhD (Makerere University)

Project Team Members and Implementing partners:Abel Mwebembezi, PhD (Reach the Youth Uganda); Ozge Sensoy Bahar, PhD (New York University); Derek Brown, PhD; Anita Kabarambi, MBChB; Susan Witte, PhD (Columbia University), Torsten Neilands, PhD (University of California San Francisco)

Suubi4PrEP is a five-year study (2025-2029) that examines the impact of a multilevel combination intervention focused on PrEP initiation and adherence among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) living in HIV hotspots in Uganda. Specifically, the study combines: 1) HIV risk reduction (HIVRR) that incorporates sessions on PrEP, 2) PrEP Peer Supporters with lived experiences taking PrEP to facilitate linkage to and continued care, share strategies to address misconceptions, manage disclosure and stigma, and model positive lifestyles while engaging in care services, and 3) an economic empowerment (EE) component that includes a matched savings account and financial literacy targeting poverty and financial barriers associated with PrEP access. Study findings may inform multi-level response efforts desperately needed to reduce new HIV infections among AGYW in a way that single interventions alone have not been able to. Learn more here.