HIV
Every child has the right to survive and thrive
Situation
Botswana has one of the HIV prevalence among the adult population (15 – 65 years) of 20.8%, (329,000 adults living with HIV. While new HIV infections have decreased, new infections among adolescent girls and young people are significantly high, accounting for a quarter of all new infections and outpacing new infections among adolescents’ boys and young men.
Significant progress has been made in the national response including increased access to HIV treatment, ultimately averting AIDS-related deaths; attaining the silver tier status on the path to eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV and exceeded the UNAIDS 95-95-95 HIV treatment targets.
Notwithstanding these achievements, children and adolescents are still lagging behind in accessing lifesaving HIV treatment. While the treatment targets among the adult population have been exceeded, the targets for young people aged 15-24 stands at 85% diagnosed, 83% on treatment, and 76% virally suppressed. Negative key indicators are still observed: 2 in every 10 adolescent girls aged 12-19 have experienced physical intimate partner violence; 6 in every 10 children and adolescents below the age of 18 are living in multidimensional poverty, and approximately 4 in every 10 young people are not in education, employment, or training.
Children and adolescents face overlapping challenges that jeopardize their health outcomes and life prospects. Majority face high violence stigma and discrimination, including self-stigma which , continues to pose a significant barrier for children and adolescents living with HIV to access HIV testing and treatment, stay on treatment, and become virally suppressed. Adolescent girls and young women are dis proportionately affected and continue to face gender-based and violence and inequalities. Above all these challenges is the missing voices of adolescents and young people to shape the policies and programmes to meet their needs.
Solutions
UNICEF contribute to national priorities aimed at eliminating vertical transmission of HIV and the triple elimination of mother to child transmission of HIV, Syphilis and Hepatitis B. Additionally, UNICEF focuses on reducing the HIV treatment gap among children and adolescents, including amplifying meaning adolescents and young people participation in advocacy and decision-making platforms.
Areas of programming:
- Evidence- generation to inform advocacy, policy, and programming.
- Delivering evidence-based approaches and programming.
- Supports government to develop and implement policies and strategies to advancing HIV achievements in the last mile.
- Contribute to Health systems strengthening.
- Facilitate adolescent and young people participation and leadership.
Triple elimination of mother to child transmission of HIV, Syphilis and Hepatitis B
With Botswana having achieved silver tier status on the path to eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV. UNICEF works collaboratively with the Ministry of Health and UN agencies, to provide technical assistance and strategic support on the path to triple elimination of HIV, Syphilis and Hepatitis B. This work includes the increased coverage of testing services and increased capacity to ensure early infant diagnosis and timely treatment of both the mother and child. The culmination of these efforts contribute to the overall vision of ending AIDs by 2030.
Closing the treatment gap among children and adolescents
To tackle the HIV treatment gap among children and adolescents, UNICEF addresses some underlying contributors to poor treatment outcomes, UNICEF through support from Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) has collaborated with the Ministry of Health, the National AIDS, and Health Promotion Agency (NAHPA), Botswana-Baylor, and Sentebale to launch a comprehensive package of interventions aimed at strengthening the capacity of the national response to cater for the specific needs of adolescents living with HIV, with peer, caregiver and health care worker support being key elements of the intervention.
