What Works for Women and Girls

MethodologyMeasuring “what works” is complicated since the outcomes and impacts of interventionsdepend on a number of factors. Operating in specific socioeconomic, cultural (includinggender), and demographic settings, interventions, such as counseling and testing, must affect“proximate determinants” such as number of concurrent partners, condom use, blood safetypractices, etc., which must act through biological determinants (exposure, efficiency of transmissionper contact and duration of infectivity) to affect HIV transmission. Interventions aredetermined to work in this compendium of evidence when they have been shown to workthrough a pathway to affecting HIV—or at least a proximate determinant, such as partnerreduction or condom use.The evidence in this review was identified using SCOPUS searches of peer-reviewed literature.Searches were conducted for 2005–2009, using the search words HIV or AIDS andwom*n, plus a number of other search word combinations for additional topics. Searchesalso included gray literature from key relevant organizations. The review focused primarily oninterventions in developing countries. Studies met the inclusion criteria if they included anintervention which had an outcome, or outcomes, and had been evaluated for effectiveness.A wide range of experts were enlisted in preparation of this compendium and in reviewingdrafts of the document.What Works?This review has found a number of interventions in all aspects of HIV/AIDS programmingthat work for women or can be seen as promising. These interventions have strong supportingevidence and many are ready to be scaled up. Main findings of only “what works” for womenand girls are outlined below by chapter. There are also a number of promising strategies thatmay be found within the full document and online at www.whatworksforwomen.org.Prevention for WomenPrevention is key. In 2007 more people acquired HIV than those who could access treatment.Prevention efforts for women and girls have been successful in numerous countries,but ongoing efforts are needed. Male and female condoms, partner reduction, male circumcisionand treating STIs are all important components of prevention efforts. Prevention effortsare also strengthened by addressing factors such as gender norms, violence against women,income and education. Male circumcision has been shown in randomized controlled trials toreduce HIV acquisition for men by 60%, and may, in the long run, reduce transmission forwomen. Vaccines and microbicides are under development and have not yet been approved foruse outside of clinical trial settings.18 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY