Publications

This report contains important new data about why young people are key to defeating the global HIV/AIDS epidemic, including results from more than 60 new national surveys. It reaffirms that we must accord top priority to making investments in the well-being of young people and to engaging them in the fight against HIV/AIDS.

The Behavioral Surveillance survey (BSS) for HIV prevention is based on serologic sentinel surveillance survey methods used in many countries to detect the emergence of HIV and monitor epidemic trends. Behavioral surveillance surveys are systems for quantatively assessing sexual behavior change, consisting of structured questionnaires, administered periodically to samples of target group specific geographic areas. This survey is the fourth round of the BSS conducted in the highway route of the FHI project area. Like in the previous rounds this survey also provides the data that is compared against data obtained in the previous rounds.  

The 2001 Nepal Demographic and Health Survey (NDHS) is a nationally representative survey of 8,726 women age 15-49 and 2,261 men age 15-59. This survey is the sixth in a series of national-level population and health surveys and the second comprehensive survey conducted as part of the global Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) program, the first being the 1996 Nepal Family Health Survey (NFHS). The primary purpose of the NDHS is to generate recent and reliable information on fertility, family planning, infant and child mortality, maternal and child health, and nutrition. In addition, the survey collected information on knowledge of HIV/AIDS.

The inter-regional workshop ‘Young people, HIV/ AIDS, Drug and Substance Use in Asia’ organized jointly by the UNICEF East Asia and the Pacific Regional Office (EAPRO) and the Regional Office for South Asia (ROSA), in collaboration with UNDCP Regional office for South Asia, took place in Kathmandu, Nepal, from 18 – 22 March 2002. It brought together a total of fifty-eight participants from the various government ministries, the NGO sector as well as UNICEF staff from eleven countries in South and South East Asia.

In spite of recent decades of unprecedented economic growth and industrialization in South East Asia, the bulk of economic activity is still based on agricultural production in rural areas. While urbanization continues to be a key demographic trend, most people still live in rural areas working in the agricultural sector. This is especially the case for Cambodia where an estimated 11.5 million people, or 80 per cent of the population, are living and working in rural areas. In Cambodia, as elsewhere in South East Asia, rural populations, due to their sheer size, must be at the center of any effective national programme to mitigate the socio-economic impact of HIV/AIDS.

Many people see an effective preventive AIDS vaccine as the best solution to the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Ten years ago many scientists had hoped that a vaccine would be available by now. Most scientists are still optimistic that vaccines will be developed and many candidates are being tested. Strategies to implement HIV/AIDS vaccination need to be developed to be ready when vaccines do become available. The nature of those programs will depend on the characteristics of each vaccine. Stover, Garnett, Seitz, and Forsythe use two computer simulation models to investigate the effects of various  vaccine characteristics and implementation strategies on the impact and cost-effectiveness of vaccines in different contexts.

Cambodia's response to its HIV/STI epidemic has included multisectoral awareness campaigns as well as more targeted interventions to improve STI management and reduce exposure in commercial sex settings. The Cambodian National Center for HIV/AIDS, Dermatology and STD (NCHADS) conducts surveillance at regular intervals to monitor biological and behavioral indicators of HIV.

This report is part of a series of baseline surveys conducted to monitor the impact of HIV/STI prevention programmes in five states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Orissa, West Bengal and in the Healthy Highways Project. This report is a summary of the methodology and findings of the Gujarat HIV Risk Behavioural Surveillance Survey (BSS). This survey, which was a part of the impact assessment of HIV prevention activities in Gujarat, was conducted in late 1999, for the Gujarat State AIDS Control Society (GSACS).

This report is part of a series of baseline surveys conducted to monitor the impact of HIV/STI prevention programmes in five states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Orissa, West Bengal and in the Healthy Highways Project. The Health Care Provider Survey (HCPS), Andhra Pradesh was conducted during November 1999 – September 2000. The purpose of this study was to collect baseline information on the quality of STI case management provided by health care providers (HCPs) in Andhra Pradesh.

This report is part of a series of baseline surveys conducted to monitor the impact of HIV/STI prevention programmes in five states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Gujarat, Kerala, Orissa, West Bengal and in the Healthy Highways Project. This report is a summary of the methodology and findings of the Healthy Highways Project (HHP) HIV Risk Behaviour Surveillance Survey (BSS). This survey was part of the impact assessment of HIV prevention activities in the HHP and was conducted in the year 2000.