C o n s i d e r i n g H I V p r e va l e n c e l e v e l s

C o n s i d e r i n g H I V p r e va l e n c e l e v e l s
Countries have specifi c contexts and needs, as well as different realities. Adult HIV prevalence levels
will be one of the factors that will determine the extent to which a country needs to be prepared to address
HIV and AIDS through education – including the structures and programmes we would expect to see in place.
Thus a country with an adult prevalence rate of 1% will necessarily be different from one where the prevalence
is 5% or more,21 because the impact on the education sector in countries with high adult prevalence rates is
quite different. As a result, we would expect to see signifi cantly more attention to planning and policy issues in
such a country than in a low prevalence country. This is why the columns in the table on the previous pages
include the ‘not applicable’ (N/A option).
However, using HIV prevalence as a sole criterion can be misleading. It is important to examine the available
data overall to get a sense of what direction the epidemic is heading (has prevalence been growing, and among
which groups? What risk and protective factors exist (i.e. is VCT for HIV available? Are stigma and discrimination
prevalent? Are gender inequities signifi cant? Is the population very mobile?), and what programmes have been
put in place in general (in the health sector, but also overall within government) and in the education sector
specifi cally.
A practical example
In 2005, the UNAIDS IATT on Education conducted a survey of the comparative readiness of 71
countries to respond to, manage and mitigate the impact of HIV and AIDS. The survey provides a benchmark
against which countries can regularly assess progress, and also a basis for comparison between countries.
In conducting the survey the study segmented countries by reported UNAIDS adult HIV prevalence, as
follows:
High prevalence = 6% or more
Medium prevalence = between 2% and 6%
Low prevalence = between 0.05% and 2%
Using this classifi cation, 60% of the countries surveyed fell in the low prevalence category, 20% in the medium
prevalence and 20% were classifi ed as high prevalence.
In recognition of the fact that adult prevalence will determine what measures we will expect to have in place, the
survey questionnaire was adapted to different contexts. All countries completed a basic questionnaire, which
included seventy-three questions. For medium prevalence countries, a further eight questions were added,
and high prevalence countries completed an additional twenty-seven questions. A version of the general
questionnaire can be found on the next page. Under suggested resources at the end of this tool, you will fi nd
the link to the full copy of the Global Readiness Survey.