Press Centre

Groundbreaking UN study on HIV/AIDS
and young people, with latest statistics and new findings on behaviour and knowledge

Who: Carol Bellamy, Executive Director, UNICEF
Peter Piot, Executive Director, UNAIDS
And young people who will share their own experiences

What: Launch of major new United Nations report, Young People and HIV/AIDS: Opportunity in Crisis, that will become a benchmark in the effort to combat the epidemic. It provides the first detailed statistics on the knowledge and behaviour of young people in the realm of HIV/AIDS, and includes an analysis of what's working and a series of recommendations on how to involve young people in the fight against AIDS.

Because young people are key to conquering the pandemic, the launch of the report coincides with the release of new global AIDS statistics on the same day.

When: Tuesday, 2 July 2002 14:30 EDT

Where: UNICEF Headquarters, New York, 3 United Nations Plaza (44th Street between 1st and 2nd Avenues)

Background: Produced by UNICEF, UNAIDS and WHO, Young People and HIV/AIDS: Opportunity in Crisis is the first comprehensive look at the knowledge and behaviour of people ages 15 to 24 relating to the disease.The study reveals that the vast majority of the world's young people have no idea how HIV/AIDS is transmitted or how to protect themselves from it. Yet it also shows that adolescence is the time when the majority of people become sexually active.

The findings underscore the central role young people must play in the battle to stop the spread of HIV. The report outlines a series of steps essential to fully harnessing the power of young people to protect themselves and each other, and to help break transmission of the disease.

For further information and advance interviews, please contact:

Liza Barrie, UNICEF Media Chief, New York, (212) 326-7593
Wivina Belmonte, UNICEF Media Geneva (4122) 909-5509
Itai Madabombe, UNICEF Media, New York (212) 326-7412