Assessment of the impact of social allowances on the quality of life of CLHIV in Tajikistan

This report presents the results of a study commissioned by UNICEF Tajikistan in collaboration with the Republican AIDS Centre and the NGO Guli Surkh to evaluate the impact of social allowances on the treatment outcomes of children living with HIV in Tajikistan. Of the 7,552 persons living with HIV in Tajikistan today, 10.2 per cent are children under the age of 18. As of December 2017, 90.5 per cent of these children were covered with antiretroviral therapy.

Evaluation of Expansion and Scale-Up of HIV Sensitive Social Protection in Eastern and Southern Africa 2014-2018

This document evaluates the Expansion and Scale-Up of HIV-Sensitive Social Protection in Eastern and Southern Africa initiative, implemented by UNICEF in Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Zimbabwe from 2014-2018 with support from the Dutch government. It assesses the extent to which the initiative met its objectives and achieved the expected results and documents the successes, challenges and lessons learned in the implementation.

Under the initiative, UNICEF Eastern and Southern Africa Regional Office (ESARO) and UNICEF Country Offices provided technical assistance to the four priority countries, and documented cross-country learnings. Activities under this initiative differed in their design and execution, allowing for adaptation to country contexts. In Malawi, activities focused on monitoring and evaluation of the National Social Support Policy; designing and implementing a system to refer cash transfer beneficiaries to HIV-related social services; and creating demand for HIV services among adolescents. In Mozambique, activities focused on providing policy-level support to the operationalization of the new social protection strategy, strengthening community-based and statutory case management, and conducting social protection fairs. In Zambia, the Government and UNICEF evaluated and scaled up a package of services that aims to increase the utilization of HIV services by adolescents. In Zimbabwe, the initiative focused on strengthening the child protection case management system and ensuring linkages between the country’s flagship cash transfer programme and HIV-related services, by using payment days to deliver services. In addition, the initiative’s regional component, led by UNICEF ESARO, focused on documentation and dissemination of best practices and overall technical assistance to the country offices involved.

Principes directeurs internationaux sur l'éducation à la sexualité

L’éducation complète à la sexualité (ECS)1 est primordiale pour préparer les jeunes à une vie sûre, productive et épanouissante dans un monde où le VIH et le SIDA, les infections sexuellement transmissibles (IST), les grossesses non désirées, la violence basée sur le genre et les inégalités entre les sexes continuent de présenter des risques graves pour leur bien-être. Cependant, bien que les bienfaits d’une ECS de qualité fondée sur le programme scolaire aient été montrés de manière claire et irréfutable, peu d’enfants et de jeunes sont dotés des moyens de prendre le contrôle de leur vie et de faire, librement et de façon responsable, des choix éclairés concernant leur sexualité et leurs relations interpersonnelles.

Nombreux sont ceux qui, entrant dans l’âge adulte, ont entendu des messages contradictoires, négatifs et déroutants sur la sexualité, messages bien souvent exacerbés par la gêne et le silence des adultes, notamment des parents et des enseignants. Dans bien des sociétés, les attitudes et les lois découragent le débat public sur la sexualité et le comportement sexuel, et les normes sociales peuvent perpétuer des situations préjudiciables, telles que l’inégalité des genres dans le contexte des relations sexuelles, de la planification familiale et de l’utilisation de contraceptifs modernes.

International technical guidance on sexuality education: an evidence-informed approach

Comprehensive sexuality education (CSE) plays a central role in the preparation of young people for a safe, productive, fulfilling life in a world where HIV and AIDS, sexually transmitted infections (STIs), unintended pregnancies, gender-based violence (GBV) and gender inequality still pose serious risks to their well-being. However, despite clear and compelling evidence for the benefits of high-quality, curriculum-based CSE, few children and young people receive preparation for their lives that empowers them to take control and make informed decisions about their sexuality and relationships freely and responsibly.

Countries are increasingly acknowledging the importance of equipping young people with the knowledge and skills to make responsible choices in their lives, particularly in a context where they have greater exposure to sexually explicit material through the Internet and other media.

Site Monitoring Guidance and Checklists

Regular monitoring of POC EID implementation sites is crucial for ensuring the quality and efficacy of site-level operations throughout the project. Site monitoring visits will provide essential insights into site-level issues related to human resources, patient flow, platform functioning, end user performance, specimen transport, data, data quality, and capacity building needs of site level staff.

Author: EGPAF

Year: 2017

Post-Market Surveillance

Post-market surveillance aims to ensure that IVDs continue to meet the same quality, safety and performance requirements as when they were initially placed on the market. WHO has developed normative guidance on post-market surveillance of in vitro diagnostics, emphasizing the importance of both reactive post-market surveillance and proactive post-market surveillance activities.

Reactive post-market surveillance refers to activities undertaken after an issue has occurred related to the IVD test (e.g., complaint reporting/monitoring; end user quality control programs, etc.), whereas proactive post-market surveillance refers to scans for potential issues related to the IVD (e.g., pre- and/or post-distribution lot testing). Lot testing involves testing samples from a manufacturing lot to ensure performance meets an acceptable standard.

For additional information on post-market surveillance, including sample reporting forms, see http://www.who.int/diagnostics_laboratory/postmarket/en/