Yaounde: Association, RéCAP+, pays homage to HIV/AIDS victims.

This was as part of the 2025 edition of the Candlelight Memorial Day, which takes place on the third Sunday of May, each year. 

The day was celebrated on May 25, in Yaounde. The ceremony was organised by RéCAP+ in partnership with the National AIDS Control Committee, NACC.

It event also sought to honour community workers for their increasing awareness at the level of the communities.

The Executive President of RéCAP+, Zambou Lucie Tsobgni, said the event was to commemorate and pay homage to leaders and community workers lost to HIV/AIDS due to lack of information or negligence. 

“This day is like a motivation and push that encourages us to continue to fight to help those still hiding or isolated to have the best information and know that we can live with HIV without problem,” she said.

Zambou said several activities have been put in place to ensure HIV/AIDS-related messages get to the targeted audience. 

She acknowledged that the suspension of aids from the US government will make things difficult, but said requests have been tabled to government for assistance of their different community programmes. 

Moment to celebrate achievements 

The Country Director of UNAIDS, Taouffik Bakali, told reporters that aside remembering the lives of those who have died of HIV/AIDS, the day is also a moment to celebrate strides made in assisting those living with the disease.  

“The particularity this year is that we are celebrating the great achievement made in Cameroon and we are getting very close to meeting the global target, which is finding people living with HIV/AIDS, putting them on treatment and ensuring that their viral load is the best,” Bakali said.

With the global funding challenges affecting Cameroon, Bakali said advocacy is on course to ensure that the gains achieved thanks to the community engagement and community leadership with the support of RéCAP+ are sustained.

“The HIV response is not only about health, it is a community response, a battle for rights, equality, moving vulnerability from families, people who are vulnerable to infections,” he said. 

Bakali said the event was also an opportunity to renew commitment on ensuring “there are no more deaths linked to AIDS, no more new infections in whatever category or sub-category of the population like children, adolescents, women or any group of the population”. 

On his part, the Permanent Secretary of NACC, Dr Fokam Joseph, said Cameroon has engaged to meet the target of HIV elimination by 2030.

“This means we don’t want to have any person dying due to HIV and we also want to achieve the HIV no new infection by 2030,” he said.

Dr Fokam noted that Cameroon is on track to achieving its goal, having identified 92 percent of those living with HIV so far and putting them on antiretroviral therapy.

“In Cameroon, HIV elimination is no longer a dream, but a reality, if you accept to take your treatment and adhere to antiretroviral therapy,” Dr Fokam insisted.

About the Candlelight Memorial Day

The Candlelight Memorial Day is one of the world's longest-standing community-based HIV/AIDS movements. It was established in 1983. Each year, thousands of communities around the world come together to honour the memory of those who have died of HIV, support those living with the virus and mobilise society against stigmatisation.

In Cameroon, the day is supported by RéCAP+, with a series of flagship activities from sports walks, an ecumenical mass and commemorative activities to honour the memory of those who have died of HIV/AIDS.

It is also to promote solidarity with people living with HIV, fight persistent stigmatization, discrimination and provide information on the progress of the national and community response to HIV.

This article was first published in The Guardian Post Edition No:3457 of Tuesday May 27, 2025