HIV and Youth
- Joan Stephenson, PhD
Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text.
- KEYWORDS:
- ADOLESCENT
- ASIA
- HIV INFECTIONS
- PACIFIC ISLANDS
- THAILAND
- VIETNAM
Noting that at least half of all new HIV infections in the Asia-Pacific region are occurring among young people, a new report by the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) is urging governments in the area to focus preventive efforts on youth (http://www.unescap.org/pdd/publications/pb/pb_5.pdf).
In Vietnam, for example, about 63% of individuals infected with HIV are younger than 30 years; in Thailand, about 50% to 60% of new HIV infections each year are among those younger than 24 years. Young people at highest risk are those engaging in commercial sex or injecting illicit drugs, and targeting such vulnerable groups is needed to turn the tide against HIV/AIDS, the report said.
A “lack of policy coherence,” which means efforts to promote safer behaviors such as condom use and needle exchange among sex workers and drug users are undermined by policies criminalizing possession of condoms or …
