What Works for Women and Girls

of the women surveyed were HIV-positive, and 77.5 percent had not completed highschool (Pettifor et al., 2008a). (Gray IV) (sexual partners, education, South Africa)Data from a longitudinal HIV surveillance and a linked demographic surveillance ina poor rural community in KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, showed that in multivariablesurvival analysis, one additional year of education reduced the hazard of acquiring HIVby 7% net of sex, age, wealth, household expenditure, rural vs. urban/periurban residence,migration status and partnership status. The purpose of the study was to investigatethe effect of three measures of socioeconomic status on HIV incidence: educationalattainment, household wealth categories (based on a ranking of households onan assets index scale) and per capita household expenditure, the sample comprised of3325 individuals who tested HIV-negative at baseline and either HIV-negative or -positiveon a second test (on average 1.3 years later). Holding other factors equal, membersof households that fell into the middle 40% of relative wealth had a 72% higher hazardof HIV acquisition than members of the 40% poorest households. Per capita householdexpenditure did not significantly affect HIV incidence. The results suggest thatincreasing educational attainment in the general population may lower HIV incidence(Bärnighausen et al., 2007). (Gray III) (education, income, South Africa)A study of key findings from nationally representative surveys conducted in 2004 of5,950 young people ages 12 to 19 in Burkina Faso; 4,252 in Ghana; 4,012 in Malawi and5,065 in Uganda found that formal education was positively associated with protectivebehaviors such as delaying first sex, abstaining from sex and using condoms. Surveyswere supplemented with 16 focus groups each in Burkina Faso and Ghana, 11 focusgroups in Malawi and 12 focus groups in Uganda. The research team also conducted406 in-depth interviews with adolescents and 240 in-depth interviews with key adultsin the lives of the adolescents (Biddlecom et al., 2007). (Gray IV) (education, sex behavior,condoms, abstinence, Burkina Faso, Ghana, Malawi, Uganda)A study in Ethiopia of 35,512 VCT clients of Family Guidance Association of Ethiopiafound that male and female VCT clients with more than secondary level education are58% and 66% (respectively) less likely to be HIV-positive than those with no education(Bradley et al., 2007). (Gray V) (education, counseling, HIV testing, Ethiopia)Evidence from population-based surveys in Zambia (1995–2003) shows a markeddecline in HIV prevalence among higher educated young people. Data are from serialpopulation-based HIV surveys conducted in selected urban and rural communities in1995 (n = 2989), 1999 (n = 3506) and 2003 (n = 4442). Analyses were stratified by residence,sex and age group. Logistic regression was used to estimate age-adjusted oddsratio of HIV between low (< or = 4 school years) and higher education (> or = 8 years)for the rural population and between low (< or = 7 school years) and higher education(> or = 11 years) for the urban population. Results show there was a universal shifttowards reduced risk of HIV infection in groups with higher than lower education inWHAT WORKS FOR WOMEN AND GIRLS325