With 7,000 young women becoming HIV positive every day, it’s no news that massive efforts are being made to specifically to target its prevalence among girls and young women in the world. And yesterday, a UN-backed guide was released in an attempt to decrease these staggering numbers. Via UN News Center:
At the publication’s launch in Mexico City against the backdrop of the XVII International AIDS Conference, Purnima Mane of the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) said that “girls and young women face double vulnerability, and double efforts are needed to protect them.”
The guide “Make it Matter” was created by UNFPA, the International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), Young Positives and the Global Coalition on Women and AIDS.
What really stands out about this guide is that its focus is not only on increasing access to reproductive and sexual health services for girls and young women (which is obviously a key component), but recognizes that there are a number of other factors – like socioeconomic status and certain patriarchal customs like child marriages – that contribute to this epidemic among the world’s women.
You can find more information and download the full guide here.