| Let integrity lead.
| Let integrity lead.
Umunyana Rugege is a human rights lawyer and the Head of Human Rights at the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). Umunyana leads the human rights work across UNAIDS, with a focus on reducing inequalities that drive HIV and removing harmful laws and policies that target people living with, at risk of or affected by HIV.
Umunyana was previously the Executive Director of SECTION27, a human rights organisation based in South Africa that seeks to achieve substantive equality and social justice.
She holds a BA in Environmental Studies (magna cum laude) from the State University of New York at Buffalo, a Master’s degree from Cornell University, and an LLB from the University of Cape Town. She has clerked at the International Criminal Court in The Hague.
Umunyana has played a leading role in several human rights cases and policy processes advancing the right to health and has been a lifelong human rights defender.
Thanks to our valued partners and to all the Fellows who continue to contribute in many ways.
