Gender

On this International Day Against Homophobia, Biphobia and Transphobia (IDAHOBIT) 2023, we unveil the UNICEF Spotlight Report on the Youth Aware initiative in Brazil. Youth Aware is a partnership with the Brazilian Ministry of Health, to transform the approach to HIV and STI prevention and treatment for LGBTQI+ youth through peer education and community mobilization. Young people in Brazil are disproportionately impacted by the HIV epidemic, and key populations face heightened vulnerability.

Supported by M·A·C VIVA GLAM, this flagship UNICEF programme redefines health services for adolescents, addressing their needs and the shifting landscape of gender and sexuality. The report showcases the stories of courageous individuals countering prejudice and sheds light on their aspirations and challenges. Together, we can challenge stigma, discrimination, and marginalization, advocating for a future where every young person can thrive. Join us as we celebrate IDAHOBIT and champion a healthier, more inclusive future.

A toolbox developed by and for girls and young women leaders pursuing gender justice in health and well-being for girls and young women like ourselves. It includes information and resources that we, as young women and girls, can use to strengthen our advocacy and target our service provision across multiple domains of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) framework, including in HIV prevention and treatment, human rights, and sexual and reproductive health.

RESPECT women: Preventing violence against women

Violence against women is a major public health problem rooted in gender inequality, and is a gross violation of women’s human rights affecting the lives and health of millions of women and girls. Aiming to end violence against women, a package/framework with infographics on prevention of violence against women - RESPECT – Preventing violence against women: A framework for policymakers, was developed, based on the UN framework for action to prevent violence against women from 2015 and updated new evidence.

• R –elationship skills strengthened
• E –mpowerment of women
• S –ervices ensured
• P –overty reduced
• E –nvironments made safe
• C –hild and adolescent abuse prevented
• T –ransformed attitudes, beliefs, and norms

This regional report aims to strengthen risk-informed programming and facilitate scale up of simple and effective tools to identify and reach those adolescent girls and young women who are most in need of services and support. All the available tools included in the review are linked in the annexes and included in UNICEF's AGYW Programming and Implementation Repository. 

More women are accessing antiretroviral therapy than men, transferring the benefits of their good health to their families and economies. When young women are empowered and have their rights fulfilled, HIV prevalence falls, there are fewer unintended pregnancies, fewer maternal deaths and fewer dropouts from school and more women join the workforce.

This document is written for national HIV surveillance programme staff responsible for monitoring trends in country HIV epidemics. Its purpose is to describe how routine prevention of mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT) programme data can be used to conduct HIV surveillance among pregnant women attending antenatal clinics (ANC). These guidelines assume that surveillance programmes have already assessed the readiness of routine programme data to be used for surveillance. WHO’s 2013 Guidelines for assessing the utility of prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) programme data for HIV sentinel surveillance among pregnant women describes these assessment methods.

Young transgender people’s immediate HIV risk is related primarily to sexual behaviours, especially unprotected anal sex with an HIV positive partner, but structural factors in addition to those already noted make young transgender people especially vulnerable to HIV. Stigma and discrimination against transgender people frequently cause them to be rejected by their families and denied healthcare services, including access to HIV testing, counselling and treatment.