Prevention and Treatment of HIV and other Sexually Transmitted Infections for Sex Workers in Low- and Middle-income Countries: Recommendations for a Public Health Approach

Sex workers in many places are highly vulnerable to HIV and other sexually transmitted infections due to multiple factors, including large numbers of sex partners, unsafe working conditions and barriers to the negotiation of consistent condom use. Moreover, sex workers often have little control over these factors because of social marginalization and criminalized work environments. Alcohol, drug use, and violence in some settings may further exacerbate their vulnerability and risk.

The objective of this document is to provide technical recommendations on effective interventions for the prevention and treatment of HIV and other STIs among sex workers and their clients. The guidelines are designed for use by national public health officials and managers of HIV/AIDS and STI programmes, nongovernmental organizations including community and civil society organizations, and health workers. Regions and countries are encouraged to adapt these guidelines to support acceptable services for sex workers taking into account the epidemiological and social context. These guidelines may also be of interest to international funding agencies, the scientific media, health policy-makers and advocates.

Year of publication:

2012

Media:

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Getting to Zero: UNAIDS Strategy 2011-2015

Despite widespread commitment to aid effectiveness principles for HIV, true national ownership and downward accountability are still far from assured. Theinterests of the global South, including those of civil society and people living with and affected by HIV, exercise too little influence in the architecture governing the global AIDS response. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) has formed a strategy of transition that aims to see fewer people newly infected than are newly placed on treatment. Doing so will require decisive action guided by a groundbreaking vision: zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination, zero AIDS-related deaths.

Media:

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Community Systems Strengthening and Key Populations

Published in 2013 by the MSMGF, this policy paper proposes recommendations related to the future of CSS, outlining the roles of key population groups in taking these recommendations forward. Recommendations include:

Provide input into the CSS modules in the Global Fund’s New Funding Model frameworks.
Conduct a detailed revision of the CSS monitoring and evaluation framework.
Develop, test, and establish tools for assessing the role of community systems in a given country or context.
Broaden CSS from its current position as a primarily Global Fund–focused initiative.

Media:

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