What's New

This study is the third round of the Integrated Biological and Behavioral Surveys (IBBS) conducted from June through August 2008 among 500 Female Sex Workers (FSWs), both street (N=200) and establishment based (N=300) in the Kathmandu Valley (Kathmandu, Bhaktapur, and Lalitpur districts). The study was undertaken to measure the prevalence of HIV and syphilis, and associated risk and prevention behaviors among FSWs.

The newly established Islamic Republic of Afghanistan faces many challenges: pockets of instability around the country, low literacy levels, high levels of opium production, and a lack of basic infrastructure. But what is known about the Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS) in Afghanistan? Is Afghanistan at risk of a Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) epidemic, and if so what can be done? The looming potential of an HIV epidemic in Afghanistan has motivated academics, donors, the Government of Afghanistan, and Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) to undertake research, create policies, and implement programs for the prevention of HIV spread in Afghanistan. Although HIV has been explored to varying degrees by several agencies, data on HIV in Afghanistan remains sparse and information sharing has been largely ad-hoc and uncoordinated. This report aims to synthesize available information on the HIV epidemic in Afghanistan. The report explores regional HIV transmission patterns, the prevalence of risk factors for HIV in Afghanistan, and Afghanistan’s current programmatic and policy responses for HIV prevention.

In Pakistan, seven times more men are reported to be infected with HIV than women. Among the Pakistani population, modes of HIV transmission include infection through sexual contact, contaminated blood and blood products, injecting drug use, and mother-to-child transmission. Although most sexual transmission of HIV results from unsafe heterosexual contact, homosexual and bisexual contact also represent important modes of transmission. According to unpublished reports, the prevalence of HIV among homosexual and bisexual Pakistani men is reaching alarming proportions. We describe the Pakistani homosexual and bisexual culture, review statistics regarding HIV prevalence and risk behaviour, and identify areas of improvement in the HIV policy with specific focus on men who have sex with men.

The main focus of the handbook is female prisoners1 and guidance on the components of a gender-sensitive approach to prison management, taking into account the typical background of female prisoners and their special needs as women in prison.

Women in prison are vulnerable to gender-based sexual violence; they may engage in risky behaviours and practices such as unsafe tattooing, injecting drug use, and, are more susceptible to self-harm.  

Married Indian women who experience physical and sexual violence from husbands face a significantly increased risk of HIV infection as compared with women who are not thus abused, and this increased prevalence of infection is not affected by major risk behaviors within their control. Findings of the present study, based on both the large population-based sample and the use of standard diagnostic testing for HIV infection, should serve to confirm the nature of this relationship and move public health policy-makers and practitioners to increase recognition of IPV as a critically important target in the global fight against HIV/AIDS.

Leading the AIDS Response in Asia: Recommendations from the Commission on AIDS in Asia XVII International AIDS Conference August 5, 2008

For the Government of Bangladesh (GoB), the Behavioral Surveillance Survey (BSS) is a significant step in understanding and monitoring the levels of risk behavior associated with HIV infection within selected, most-at-risk populations (MARP) in the country. The current BSS, under the umbrella of an internationally recognized second-generation HIV surveillance system documents the risk behaviors of the selected MARP groups leading to vulnerability for HIV infection. It also focuses on the situation analysis of the MARP risk behaviors between behavioral surveillance rounds.

The UNAIDS/WHO Working Group on Global HIV/AIDS and STI Surveillance, initiated in November 1996, is the coordination and implementation mechanism for UNAIDS and WHO to compile and improve the quality of data needed for informed decisionmaking and planning at national, regional and global levels. The Epidemiological Fact Sheets are one of the products of close collaboration around the globe. The Fact Sheets collate the most recent country-specific data on HIV prevalence and incidence, together with information on behaviour determined to be important in understanding the epidemic.

Technical and funding support based on such evidence for large scale strategic interventions that address male-to-male and transgender sexualities and related HIV vulnerabilities is only now beginning to materialize in South Asia. One of the first steps needed in scaling up this response is to map the populations concerned and their representative groups, organizations and networks. This study was commissioned by APCOM and carried out by SAATHII, and aimed to map the situation of and HIV 'infrastructure' for transgenders in the South Asian countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. The mapping study focused on transgenders, given that not enough is known about their specific vulnerabilities to HIV and the response that is already under way to address these vulnerabilities.