25 June 2017
South Africa's AIDS Conference in Durban focused on empowering youth, particularly adolescent girls and young women. Hilary Thulare, from the AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), shared that one of the top issues identified by youth is the lack of approachable resources with non-judgmental staff. According to Thulare, establishing better communication with youth can change attitudes and motivate them towards responsible sexual…
19 June 2017
According to India's National Family Health Survey (NFHS) 2016, only 14.7% of women in rural Rajasthan, India have a comprehensive knowledge of HIV and AIDS. A high migratory population in the state makes Rajasthan vulnerable to HIV and AIDS. But a matter of even more serious concern is the low percentage of women with comprehensive knowledge of HIV and AIDS.
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19 June 2017
The National Youth Council of Malawi (NYCOM) together with the Youth and Health Ministries will host a National Symposium in Lilongwe this month focusing on issues of HIV/AIDS and Sexual Reproductive Health and Rights (SRHR). The symposium aims to bring together key players in implementing programs around adolescents as well as reviewing coordination mechanism and programming gaps of adolescent and youth-targeted HIV/AIDS…
19 June 2017
In Uganda, 575 adolescent girls and young women (ages 15-24) get infected with HIV on a weekly basis. To address factors leading to the vulnerability of infection for adolescent girls and young women, The International Community of Women Living with HIV in Eastern Africa (ICWEA) and its partners have embarked on training young women in practical skills for economic empowerment and negotiation abilities to prevent HIV…
19 June 2017
Professors and epidemiologists Salim and Quarraisha Abdool Karim visited the Chatsworth Regional Office. Prof. Quarraisha Abdool Karim explained that reducing HIV in young women is the only answer to downtrend the epidemic. "Biomedical interventions alone cannot solve this challenge but gender, power and value of women must be given priority," she said.
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12 June 2017
Caprisa's director, Dr. Salim Abdool Karim, says now women can protect themselves against HIV by using a drug called Truvada. According to Dr. Karim, the incidence rate for HIV continues to be unacceptably high, particularly among young women as they bear the brunt of the HIV epidemic and continue to have the highest rate of HIV in South Africa.
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6 June 2017
Delroy Chuck, Jamaica's Minister of Justice, stated that treating HIV and AIDS as solely a health issue is the biggest mistake. According to the Minister, HIV and AIDS cannot be addressed without confronting institutionalised discrimination of women, gender-based violence, poverty, social exclusion and inequality.
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13 June 2017
Over 6,000 adolescent girls in Zimbabwe have benefited from the DREAMS initiative, funded by USAID and coordinated by the National AIDS Council. The DREAMS director, Masimba Nyamuchena, reported that 30% of young women in urban Gweru, Mutare and Bulawayo were retained in employment to date, after completing a six-month internship under the DREAMS initiative. Family planning uptake has also improved among adolescent girls…
14 June 2017
A staggering 2,000 girls and young women are infected with HIV every week in South Africa. Basic Education Deputy Minister Enver Surty presented the department's integrated policy on HIV, TB and STIs and said the implementation of the policy was the responsibility of all managers within education and health systems. Another department staff, Amanda Rozani, said the policy will be the first of its kind which addresses HIV…
6 June 2017
The Zambezi Region of Namibia faces a raft of developmental challenges hampering efforts to remedy sexual reproductive health rights and HIV and AIDS. Some health facilities in the region are not accessible to residents that find themselves in the vast sparsely populated region. To reach health facilities for some residents that are mostly destitute means having to walk over 10 kilometres, risking crossing paths with…
13 June 2017
A survey conducted in South Africa among 650 young women (ages 16-24) found that 1 in 20 women not receiving HIV treatment reported uncaring, judgmental health staff as the primary barrier to care. The report states that the number of mentions of rude‚ untrustworthy and unsupportive care from nurses is notable and worrying.
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12 June 2017
Many countries have increased treatment of HIV-infected pregnant women to lower their chances of infecting their babies, but most countries do not automatically continue treatment for those women after delivery - important for keeping them healthy long-term. Dr. Chewe Luo of UNICEF she said adolescent girls (10-18 year olds) are too often ignored by global HIV testing, prevention and treatment programs. Without protecting…
1 June 2017
A new study published Thursday examined what stalled an early attempt at an anti-HIV gel, and found certain types of vaginal bacteria broke down the protective medication before it had time to work. “This is an important study, it does tell us that this is another factor we have to consider.” said microbiologist Sharon Hillier of the University of Pittsburgh.
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2 June 2017
The Kenya Red Cross Society (KRCS) through funding from the Global Fund and support from the Kenyan government has launched a Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) project in Turkana County that aims to address HIV risk amongst the adolescents and young women aged between 15-24 years. The project that was launched on 31 May 2017 in Kalokol, Turkana is being spearheaded by KRCS and National AIDS & STI Control Programme (NASCOP…
5 January 2017
Canada has one of the world’s strictest legal standards when it comes to criminalizing HIV non-disclosure, resulting in a high prosecution rate for people living with HIV. Ground-breaking PhD research from SFU health sciences graduate Sophie Patterson, a physician, finds that women living with HIV are more likely to face a legal obligation to disclose their HIV status compared to men. She says this is because women face…
5 June 2017
Some 315 vulnerable girls and women were happy graduates on May 26 as they completed a mentorship and skills course managed by a three-year project of Plan International Uganda and Uganda Youth Development Link (UYDEL). Rogers Kasirye, executive director of UYDEL, said they graduated after being trained in skills like catering, electrical engineering, bakery, plumbing, welding and sweater knitting, among others. He added…
1 June 2017
The report titled, ‘Reinvigorating the AIDS response to catalyse sustainable development and UN reform’ (A/71/864), finds that progress on reducing new HIV infections among adults has stalled, women and girls continue to be disproportionately affected by the AIDS epidemic, particularly in Africa, and financing for a global response is not sufficient. The report further highlights challenges related to higher risks of…
30 May 2017
Amanda Soto's life was turned upside down in 2012 when she learned she was HIV-positive. Feeling lost, Soto was referred to Newly Empowered Women, a facility that helped her move on with her life. "I'm very proud of her. I'm proud of the fact that this program was able to make a difference in her life," Michelle Durham, executive director of BEAT AIDS, a nonprofit organization, said.
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29 May 2017
Uganda is committed to having an HIV free generation and is working towards realizing zero new HIV infections and zero AIDS related deaths. But one critical question still hangs unanswered. The problem of stigma and discrimination associated with HIV/AIDS and society’s attitude to it is still a big question that needs an answer. Women living with HIV often experience domestic violence, the non-provision of basic needs,…
22 May 2017
The World Health Organisation (WHO) says girls account for nearly 80 per cent of new HIV infections in Sub-Saharan Africa. Dr Felicitas Zawaira, the Director, Family and Reproductive Health Cluster, WHO Regional Office for Africa, said this in a statement issued in Abuja on Monday. Zawaira said most recent data from the organisation showed that only 13 per cent of these adolescent girls, and nine per cent of adolescent boys…