HIV/AIDS and Adolescent-Friendly ServicesISSUE Even though prevalence of HIV in Iran is currently low (officially less than 0.1 per cent), the country is not safeguarded against an epidemic. Awareness of the disease and its modes of prevention is lacking, particularly amongst young people and women. In addition, traditional attitudes towards sexual relations means any open discussion is very limited. Adolescents make up nearly 27 per cent of the population in Iran, but little is known about this group’s level of knowledge about and attitudes towards HIV/AIDS. The few, non-representative studies that have been conducted among Iranian adolescents show dismaying results: One-third of female adolescents could not name even one mode of HIV transmission. Both boys and girls did not perceive themselves to be at risk of HIV infection and, while male adolescents had higher levels of knowledge about HIV, they continue to engage in high-risk behaviours such as unprotected sex and sex with multiple partners and commercial sex workers. While the above results cannot be generalized to the entire population of Iranian adolescents, it is clear that more youth-focused information is needed in order to help young people protect themselves from the disease. ACTION UNICEF Iran’s HIV/AIDS Programme works with governmental and non-governmental partners, to disseminate key messages on HIV/AIDS and related issues through popular and other media and to ensure the provision of youth-friendly health services and information. The currently funded (2005-2009) programme covers 13 rural and semi-urban focus districts and is targeted at children aged 6-18 only. Programme partners are mainly government ministries and interventions are mostly based within the school environment. Most-at-risk children, youth and women are not necessarily in school and can be most often found in urban communities where high-risk behaviours are most likely to occur.
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