Synthesis Report of the Rapid Assessment of Adolescent and HIV

Synthesis Report of the Rapid Assessment of Adolescent and HIV Programme Context in Five Countries: Botswana, Cameroon, Jamaica, Swaziland and Zimbabwe.

The assessment process described in this report was designed to support countries to strengthen the adolescent component of their national HIV programmes. Through the review of existing data on HIV, health and development in adolescents the assessments are a systematic way to identify equity and performance gaps affecting adolescent HIV programming.

The need for routine viral load testing

Greatly expanded access to routine viral load testing will be a game-changer in the global response to AIDS. Routine viral load tests improve treatment quality and individual health outcomes for people living with HIV, contribute to prevention, and potentially reduce resource needs for costly second- and third-line HIV medicines.

On the Fast-Track to End AIDS: UNAIDS Strategy 2016-2021

The AIDS movement, led by people living with and affected by HIV, continues to inspire the world and offer a model for a people-centred, rights-based approach to global health and social transformation. And yet, today, amid a swirl of competing and complex global concerns, we confront a serious new obstacle: the oppressive weight of complacency. This is happening when we know that if we make the right decisions and the right investments now, the end of AIDS can be within our grasp. This moment is, however, fleeting. We have a fragile window of opportunity—measured in months—in which to scale up.

PMTCT IN Humanitarian Settings

Humanitarian emergencies in countries with a high HIV disease burden can cause considerable PMTCT antiretroviral treatment (ART) interruption. The risk of drug resistance emerging is increased, efficacy of treatment compromised and the effective scale-up of lifelong ART for pregnant and breastfeeding women living with HIV is impeded. Therefore, strategies to ensure the uninterrupted supply of antiretrovirals for PMTCT during crises are needed. This paper highlights lessons learned from PMTCT implementation in emergencies based on reported literature, key informant interviews, and recommendations made. The review focuses on delivering ART for PMTCT.

Option B+ Monitoring & Evaluation Framework: Dissemination & Country Consultation

A robust monitoring and evaluation (M&E) system is a key component of a strong health system. With the current WHO recommendation of lifelong ART for all pregnant and breastfeeding women living with HIV, outcomes (including maternal survival and final infant HIV status) require monitoring through longitudinal data systems complemented with regular cohort analyses and enhanced monitoring. Additionally, as we move toward the need for more strategic policies and programming to garner system and resource efficiencies, M&E systems need to be designed to be able to inform differences arising from age, sex, and geographic trends as well as identify weaknesses such as sub-optimal commodity supply and testing quality.

Global AIDS Update

The latest UNAIDS data, covering 160 countries, demonstrate both the enormous gains already made and what can be achieved in the coming years through a Fast-Track approach. In just the last two years the number of people living with HIV on antiretroviral therapy has increased by about a third, reaching 17 million people—2 million more than the 15 million by 2015 target set by the United Nations General Assembly in 2011. Since the first global treatment target was set in 2003, annual AIDS-related deaths have decreased by 43%. In the world’s most affected region, eastern and southern Africa, the number of people on treatment has more than doubled since 2010, reaching nearly 10.3 million people. AIDSrelated deaths in the region have decreased by 36% since 2010.