Prevention

Key Priorities  |   USAID Issue Briefs  |  Additional Technical Resources

	USAID-funded health programs provide assistance for the Real Man, Real Woman HIV/AIDS prevention campaign, which encourages young people to abstain from sex until marriage. It also encourages society to rise up and condemn older men and women who lure young people into sex in exchange for favors. The girls are students at the Chawama Basic School in Lusaka, Zambia. Source: USAID/Zambia

Of the countless recent developments in the global fight against HIV/AIDS, perhaps the most important is the growing number of nations in which there is clear evidence of declining HIV prevalence, as a result of changes in sexual behavior. According to UNAIDS' 2008 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic, "In sub-Saharan Africa, most national epidemics have stabilized or begun to decline." Zimbabwe, Botswana, Malawi, and Zambia are among those that have seen declines in national prevalence. The report also emphasizes, however, that although most sub-Saharan epidemics have stabilized, they have often done so at high prevalence levels.

Another key trend in HIV/AIDS prevention is the growing importance of addressing HIV-discordant regular partnerships as a means of transmission, as many HIV-discordant couples do not know their HIV status. In addition, for all populations, multiple concurrent partnerships remain a significant challenge and, in many cases, help fuel the rapid spread of the disease. Mother-to-child transmission continues to be the leading source of child HIV infections, and providing prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) services to women is a critical element of any HIV prevention program.

As the epidemic shifts and changes, USAID's HIV prevention programs are designed to slow the rising HIV infection rates so that fewer people will suffer the dire consequences of AIDS. USAID's programs promote abstinence, being faithful to one partner, and correct and consistent condom use. USAID programs also include PMTCT, injection safety, counseling and testing, and biomedical interventions.

Key Priorities

Promoting abstinence, being faithful, and correct and consistent use of condoms – USAID supports successful programs to prevent the sexual transmission of HIV through a variety of state-of-the art interventions. USAID is virtually unmatched in its field reach and depth of experience.

Targeting multiple, concurrent partnerships and other high-risk sexual behaviors – USAID is a leader in developing, implementing, and monitoring communication strategies to change high-risk behaviors such as having multiple sexual partners and unprotected sex in high-risk groups, such as commercial sex workers and men who have sex with men. USAID activities develop appropriate messages to reach groups at high risk as well as the general population. Through a combination of interpersonal communication and mass media, including newspapers, radio, billboards, peer counseling, and community theater, USAID communications campaigns encourage changes in behavior and help reduce stigma surrounding HIV/AIDS.

HIV Prevention Spotlight
The Clearinghouse on Male Circumcision for HIV Prevention (www.malecircumcision.org) is a collaborative effort to generate and share information resources with the international public health community, civil society groups, health policy makers, and program managers. Learn More

Preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV – USAID is helping women infected with HIV reduce the likelihood of transmitting the virus to their children by supporting improvement of antenatal care, short-course antiretroviral medication, strengthened family planning and safe delivery services, counseling and support for safer infant feeding, and HIV counseling and testing.

Promoting HIV counseling and testing – HIV counseling and testing provides an important gateway to HIV/AIDS care and treatment. USAID is a technical leader in the field of counseling and testing, contributing to the international body of knowledge on methodologies and best practices.

Reducing girls' vulnerability to HIV – Involving women and young girls is an essential element of any comprehensive HIV/AIDS program. Gender-based violence, transactional sex, land rights, education, and economic opportunity are all factors that lead to a higher risk of HIV infection. Engaging men and boys is also a powerful parallel found in USAID's HIV/AIDS programs.

Supporting blood and medical injection safety – Carrying out safe medical and waste management practices can be challenging in resource-limited settings, particularly when health workers are few, overburdened, or not properly trained. For this reason, USAID supports groundbreaking work on blood and medical injection safety.