What Works for Women and Girls

International Political Commitments on Women,Girls and HIV/AIDSSince the 1994 International Conference on Population and Development, governments haverecognized that action must be taken to prevent HIV infections among women and girls,provide care and support, and address the “social, economic, gender and racial inequities”that increase vulnerability (ICPD Programme of Action, 1994). At the United Nations GeneralAssembly Special Session in 2001, governments noted that “women and girls are disproportionatelyaffected by HIV/AIDS” and committed to develop national strategies to “promotethe advancement of women and women’s full enjoyment of all human rights; promote sharedresponsibility of men and women to ensure safe sex; empower women to have control overand decide freely and responsibly on matters related to their sexuality to increase their abilityto protect themselves from HIV infection” (United Nations Declaration on HIV/AIDS. 2001).In 2006, member states of the United Nations General Assembly went further in thePolitical Declaration on HIV/AIDS, committing themselves to, among other things:Promote responsible sexual behavior among youth and adolescents (including the use ofcondoms);Provide evidence- and skills-based, youth-specific HIV education and mass media interventions;andProvide youth-friendly health services;Eliminate gender inequalities, gender-based abuse and violence;Provide health care and services, including for sexual and reproductive health, as well ascomprehensive information and education to increase the capacity of women and adolescentgirls to protect themselves from the risk of HIV infection;Ensure that women can exercise their right to have control over, and decide freely andresponsibly on, matters related to their sexuality in order to increase their ability to protectthemselves from HIV infection;Take all necessary measures to create an enabling environment for the empowerment ofwomen and strengthen their economic independence;Strengthen legal, policy, administrative and other measures for the promotion and protectionof women’s full enjoyment of all human rights;Ensure that pregnant women have access to antenatal care, information, counseling andother HIV services;Increase the availability of and access to effective treatment to women living with HIV andinfants in order to reduce mother-to-child transmission of HIV;Ensure effective interventions for women living with HIV, including voluntary and confidentialcounseling and testing, with informed consent; access to treatment, especially lifelongantiretroviral therapy; and the provision of a continuum of care.28 CHAPTER 1 INTRODUCTION