The Priorities in Reproductive Health and HIV Conference is recognised in Africa as being one of the major platforms for sharing regional research between researchers, clinicians, programme managers and policy makers. Topics for 2005 included HIV/AIDS, sexually transmitted infections, vaccines (HPV, HIV), microbicides, barrier methods, contraception, adolescent reproductive health, maternal health, male involvement, traditional practices, and genital tract cancers. In 2005, for the first time, this conference followed The Third South African Gender-Based Violence and Health Conference which achieved its aim to raise the profile of gender-based violence as a health issue; present research on the links between gender-based violence and HIV; build capacity for research; improve dissemination of research findings, and advocate for research-based policy. This conference has previously drawn participants from all regions of the globe, and past topics have included child sexual abuse, femicide, gender-based violence and HIV, health worker training and gender-based violence, and intervention research.

Due to the increasing demand for conference attendance in the health sector and to avoid clashing with some of the key international bi-annual conferences, we have decided to change the term of this event from annual to every second year. Therefore, the Priorities Reproductive Health and HIV Conference will next occur in the third quarter, 2007. Full details of this event will be updated onto this website by the end of the first quarter 2005 to ensure you all have full and sufficient information and notice for your attendance. We received such a high quality and submissions for abstracts in 2005 that we will be considering a permanent poster presentation exhibition for the 2007 conference. This will also provide you all with much more notice to present your abstracts and work on your poster presentations for the event.

Keynote speakers will be invited to present on priority issues in each session. Experts from South Africa and the African region, and participants from international agencies, institutions and organisations will be approached and invited. This will be in addition to the extensive poster presentations due to the value they provide to this event.

The biannual international Microbicides Conference will be held in the beautiful city of Cape Town from the 23 rd to the 26 th of April 2006 and will be co-chaired by Dr Gita Ramjee of the Medical Research Council, Prof Helen Rees of the Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit at Chris Hani Baragwanath Hospital, Soweto, and Dr Kim Dickson of the Department for International Development in Nigeria. The three co-chairs are proud to be hosting this event in Africa , as it is the first time the conference will be held in a developing country. The previous meetings took place in Washington in 2000, in Antwerp in 2002 and in London in 2004.