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Key Populations

Key populations (KP) bear disproportionate burdens of HIV infection. Globally, new infections among KPs and their sexual partners account for 36% of all new HIV infections.1 Achieving the UNAIDS “fast track” treatment targets will require a renewed and focused approach to identify most at-risk and vulnerable populations and respond to their specific needs.

Evidence suggests that KPs—notably men who have sex with men (MSM), people who inject drugs, sex workers, and transgender persons—are underserved and face violence, criminalization, ineffective policies that don’t protect their rights, and stigma and discrimination, including in health care settings. This reality prevents KPs from accessing needed HIV prevention and care services, leading to low service coverage, an important driver of ongoing HIV transmission in many resource limited settings. Young women and girls are also increasingly at risk of acquiring HIV. Acquisition of HIV is often associated with the incidence of unintended pregnancies, transactional sex, and gender-based violence.

1UNAIDS, Gap Report, 2016.

Program Highlights

Expanding HIV Care and Treatment in Zimbabwe
The ZimPAAC consortium collaborates with the Ministry of Health and Child Care (MoHCC) in Zimbabwe to meet the following primary HIV epidemic control objectives:

  • Diagnose 95% of all persons living with HIV through integrated testing
  • Ensure 95% of individuals diagnosed with HIV are initiated on antiretroviral therapy (ART), retained ...
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Improving HIV Care and Treatment across the Caribbean
I-TECH supports a variety of activities aimed at improving HIV care and treatment in the Caribbean region, such as on-site clinical mentoring, development of training curricula, and providing clinical support materials to improve care and treatment for HIV/AIDS in the Caribbean region ...
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Improving HIV Care for Key Populations in the Caribbean
Key, at-risk populations in the region include men who have sex with men (MSM), bisexual men, transgender women, and sex workers. In Jamaica, HIV prevalence among MSM was estimated at 32.8%,1 as compared to an estimated prevalence of 1.8% in the general adult population in 2017.1 Among transgender women, the ...
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Innovative Training Models in Tanzania
I-TECH Tanzania has implemented many pre- and in-service training initiatives and materials, as well as adopted TrainSMART ...
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