Social Issues

The latest edition of the KwaZulu-Natal HIV-911 Directory of HIV-Related Services is now available. The directory contains information on 2 297 organisations actively involved in HIV, TB and STI-related prevention, treatment and support in the province. It also includes information on organisations providing socio-economic, legal and psycho-social support programmes. Service provider information is categorised by municipality and type of service offered. The database is updated on an annual basis .

There are a number of ways to access the HIV-911 referral network:

Online Directory:www.hiv911.org.za

The report “Dementia: a public health priority” has been jointly developed by WHO and Alzheimer's Disease International. The purpose of this report is to raise awareness of dementia as a public health priority, to articulate a public health approach and to advocate for action at international and national levels.

This paper outlines the impacts of the global economic crisis on women, girls and gender equality in order to advocate for sustained investment in this area. To capture the full impact of the crisis on women and girls, the paper provides a summary of evidence from high-, middle- and lowincome countries across the globe, with a focus on countries with a high burden of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV).  It draws on various sources of information, including a review of the literature, relevant documents from the public and private sectors, an analysis of relevant databases, and interviews with notable scholars and professionals in the fields of economics and gender equality.

The 3rd South African National HIV Communication Survey (NCS) results, released at the XIX International AIDS Conference in Washington, D.C., revealed new data that show substantial increases in behaviors that reduce the risk of HIV: condom use, HIV counseling and testing and voluntary medical male circumcision. The data also confirm that exposure to HIV communication programs have a direct impact on people practicing these behaviors.

UNAIDS and the Kaiser Family Foundation have been tracking donor government assistance for AIDS in low- and middle- income countries since 2002. This latest report provides data from governments for 2011, the most recent year with comparable data available across donors. As it shows, international assistance rose sharply from 2002 through 2008, the period just before the onset of the economic crisis. It then began to flatten and, last year, for the first time, disbursements declined. The current report finds that although funding has gone back up, it remains at 2008 levels. If such trends continue, reaching the UN Political Declaration investment target of $22-24 billion needed by 2015 could be at risk.

This report outlines some of the strategies, tools and policies that have supported the scaling up of treatment during the past decade as well as those that can address persistent or new challenges. The results are presented from a 23-country survey of how consistently these strategies are being implemented. (See Annex 1) The findings demonstrate encouraging progress by some health ministries in adopting many of the enabling policies needed to facilitate scale-up and improve care. Nevertheless, the adoption and implementation of these strategies, tools and policies are lagging in some countries. The survey results provide a mixed picture: 11 of 23 countries have reached antiretroviral therapy coverage of 60% or more.

This report assesses the general levels of transmitted and acquired drug resistance in select geographical areas of low- and middle-income countries. It is based on two distinct data sources: surveys performed to assess transmitted and acquired drug resistance using standardized WHO methods (WHO surveys) and a broad systematic review of the published literature on transmitted and acquired drug resistance. Findings from the monitoring of early warning indicators of HIV drug resistance are also presented and discussed. This report is organized as follows.

These recommendations have been developed specifically to address the daily use of antiretrovirals in HIV-uninfected people to block the acquisition of HIV infection. This prevention approach is known as pre-exposure prophylaxis.

At this stage evidence is available from studies with two groups: men and transgender women who have sex with men; and serodiscordant heterosexual couples. In parallel, WHO also is preparing new recommendations on the use of antiretroviral drugs in people living with HIV to prevent transmission of infection.

This new UNAIDS report contains the latest data on numbers of new HIV infections, numbers of people receiving antiretroviral treatment, AIDS-related deaths and HIV among children. It highlights new scientific opportunities and social progress which are bringing the world closer to UNAIDS vision of zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination and zero AIDS-related deaths.

The report also gives an overview of international and domestic HIV investments and the need for greater value for money and sustainability.

Calling for global solidarity and shared responsibility, the UNAIDS report contains commentaries from global and community leaders as well as people living with and affected by HIV.