Legal Environment Assessment
ASSESSMENT OF LEGAL AND REGULATORY FRAMEWORK FOR HIV, AIDS AND TUBERCULOSIS FINAL REPORT FOREWORD Botswana has made significant progress in addressing the HIV epidemic. Although this Legal Environment Assessment (LEA) report has shown that progressive laws, policies and jurisprudence in Botswana has helped to safeguard the rights of all people to equality and non-discrimination, including people living with HIV and TB and vulnerable populations such as women, there remain gaps and challenges that have been identified within Botswana’s current legal and policy framework that create barriers to access to prevention, treatment, care and support for all people, including vulnerable and key populations. It is imperative for all of us to take cognisance of the recommendations in the report if we are end AIDS by 2030. Botswana has adopted the Treat All strategy, developed HIV Testing Services (HTS) Strategy and reviewed the treatment guidelines. To achieve these targets by 2020, it is essential that the legal environment supports the national response in programming and ensure unrestricted access to services among all people of Botswana regardless of race, colour, religion, creed, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, vocation or other status. This report is a fundamental step in ensuring that each stakeholder plays a role in the fight against the epidemic. As highlighted by the UN Secretary General: “Whatever our role in life, wherever we may live, in some way or another, we all live with HIV. We are all affected by it. We all need to take responsibility for the response.” Ensuring no one is left behind is essential since vulnerable and key populations bear much of the burden of the epidemic today.
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