By MONICA KAYOMBO/Zambia,Lusaka
WHILE Rio de Janeiro is internationally known for its beaches, mountains and other tourist attractions, the city is also home to the Maré complex, one of its largest and most densely populated groups of favelas.
Located in Rio’s North Zone, Maré comprises 15 favelas and is home to more than 140,000 people. The community faces challenges including poverty, drug trafficking, armed violence and barriers to accessing basic public services.
Brazil has made significant progress in its HIV response. UNAIDS estimates that HIV prevalence among adults aged 15 to 49 in Brazil was about 0.6 percent in 2023. The country provides free HIV testing, prevention and treatment through its Unified Health System (SUS).
However, social and structural inequalities can make it more difficult for some communities to access health services, HIV prevention, testing and treatment.
For journalists attending the 26th International AIDS Conference in Rio de Janeiro, a visit to Maré offered an opportunity to see how health, human rights, poverty, violence and social exclusion intersect.
The visit was conducted under strict security conditions, including restrictions on photography and engagement with some local residents.
Fighting for the right to health
Carolina Dias, coordinator of the Right to Health axis at Redes da Maré, explained that the organisation has its roots in community mobilisation that began decades ago.
Redes da Maré was formally established in 2007, emerging from efforts by residents who had been organising since the 1980s to demand greater access to rights and public services. Today, the organisation works across five structural areas to promote the rights and quality of life of residents of Maré.
Ms Dias said the organisation’s work is rooted in the understanding that health cannot be separated from other basic rights.
“We understand how it is brought about, especially if we are talking about health in the territory, in which you have a lack of rights, you have barriers to access all kinds of rights,” she said.
She said residents face challenges relating to access to education, health and public security.
“These people do not have public security, they do not haveacces to quality education as compared to others in this country. So in our organisation, our mission is to guarantee these people’s rights. So we work from those areas,” Ms Dias explained.
Redes da Maré provides a range of services and programmes, including health-related support, harm-reduction initiatives, referrals, psychosocial support and programmes aimed at strengthening the rights and wellbeing of vulnerable residents.
The organisation also conducts research and produces data on the realities experienced by people living in Maré, including research on violence, health, education and the experiences of women.
Living amid invisible boundaries
For visitors unfamiliar with Rio’s favelas, entering Maré can be an unsettling experience.
The complex is divided by invisible boundaries associated with different armed groups, creating significant challenges for residents and service providers.
Ms Dias said the organisation’s work begins with recognising that education, health and public security are fundamental rights.
“We have three armed groups in this territory. Our work starts from understanding that quality education, health and public security are fundamental rights for improving people’s rights,” she said.
The impact of armed violence on residents is significant.
According to Redes da Maré’s De Olho na Maré monitoring project, there were 231 police operations in Maré between 2016 and 2025, resulting in 160 deaths and 1,538 recorded cases of violence and violations of residents’ rights. The organisation also recorded 163 days during which public schools were closed because of police operations over the same period.
The disruptions affect more than education. In 2025 alone, Redes da Maré reported that health facilities were closed for 14 days as a result of police operations, resulting in 7,866 scheduled or ongoing health follow-ups not taking place.
Education remains a challenge
Despite having a large population, Maré faces challenges in ensuring adequate educational opportunities for residents.
Redes da Maré has highlighted the impact of violence on children’s education, with school closures caused by police operations resulting in children and adolescents losing the equivalent of about one school year over the decade from 2016 to 2025.
The organisation has also established education initiatives, including programmes aimed at helping children, young people and adults access technology and prepare for higher education.
For many residents, access to higher education remains difficult, despite the proximity of institutions such as the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and Fiocruz.
Harm reduction and restoring dignity
Redes da Maré also works with people who use drugs and others experiencing social vulnerability.
Thais Andrade, coordinator of the organisation’s harm-reduction work, said more than 150 people pass through the centre each day to access services such as meals, showers, support and empowerment programmes.
Among the activities offered are cosmetology and counselling, including support for victims of gender-based violence.
At Casa das Mulheres, journalists met Lilian Leonel, 59, who previously lived on the streets and now works with Redes da Maré as a harm-reduction worker.
Ms Leonel gave a moving account of her experiences of homelessness and crack cocaine use, and how support from the organisation helped her rebuild her life.
She said the support she received at Espaço Normal helped her because she was not judged or stigmatised.
Ms Leonel has since returned to school and says she has significantly reduced her drug use.
“I want to gain weight, I want to be beautiful, look good and I want to be educated,” she said.
Mr Rodrigo Pereira, coordinator of Espaço Normal, said the space provides support and a safe environment for community members experiencing injustice and inequality.
More than poverty and violence
Maré is often portrayed through the lenses of poverty, armed violence and drug trafficking.
However, residents and community organisations say the territory should not be defined solely by these challenges.
It is also a vibrant community with a strong history of organisation, culture and activism.
For decades, residents have organised themselves to demand better access to education, health, housing, security and other public services.
Redes da Maré is part of this broader community effort, working to strengthen residents’ rights, produce knowledge about the territory and develop responses to the realities faced by local communities.
The experience of visiting Maré demonstrated that the fight against HIV and AIDS extends beyond medicines, testing and treatment.
It is also a fight for human rights, dignity and equality.
Poverty, stigma, discrimination, violence and barriers to health and other public services can all influence people’s ability to access HIV prevention, testing and treatment.
For journalists covering the global HIV response, Maré therefore, offered an important reminder that health outcomes are shaped not only by what happens inside health facilities, but also by the social, economic and political conditions in which people live.
Brazil’s HIV response has demonstrated that universal access to healthcare can make a significant difference. In December 2025, Brazil became the largest country in the world to receive Wprld Health Organisation ( WHO) certification for eliminating the vertical transmission of HIV. UNAIDS attributed the achievement in part to Brazil’s commitment to universal healthcare, human rights and free access to antiretroviral treatment.
Yet the experience of communities such as Maré shows that ensuring access to services also requires addressing the wider inequalities and structural barriers that affect people’s lives.
The 26th International AIDS Conference was held in Rio de Janeiro from July 27 to 31, 2026. Against the backdrop of a fragile global HIV response, the conference highlighted the need to rethink approaches to HIV prevention and treatment and ensure that innovations and services reach the people who need them most.
