Opportunity in crisis: Preventing HIV from early adolescence to young adulthood

Today, around the world, there are 5 million young men and women living with HIV. “Opportunity in Crisis: Preventing HIV from early adolescence to young adulthood” examines the state of the HIV epidemic among young people, highlighting the challenges they face and presenting solutions informed by evidence of what works with different age groups and in different epidemic settings. The report outlines key steps towards building a continuum of HIV prevention that can help keep children HIV-free as they develop into young adults.

The first Opportunity in Crisis report, published in 2002, put forward 10 steps to help move countries closer to their prevention goals. Since then, some countries have experienced gains in knowledge and positive changes in the sexual behaviour of their young people, and some countries have achieved declines in HIV prevalence and incidence. Many of these achievements can be attributed to the efforts of young people and their schools, families, health workers and communities, as well as to the efforts of some political leaders. But neither the efforts made nor the progress achieved so far have been sufficient.

This report is published by UNICEF with UNAIDS, UNESCO, UNFPA, ILO, WHO and the World Bank.