Transactional sex and HIV risk among young women in rural South Africa - Meghna Ranganathan

Young women aged 15-24 in sub-Saharan Africa are 3-4 times more likely to be HIV-infected than boys or men of the same age. Transactional sex - sex exchanged for material possessions or favours - is a significant source of HIV risk in young women.

This Learning Lab describes analysis, key findings and implications from the HPTN 068 Swa Koteka Conditional Cash Transfer trial. 

How can sex workers negotiate condom use with their romantic partners?

, ; How can sex workers negotiate condom use with their romantic partners?

A guardian article, written by Priya Pillai, shares photographs and quotes from female sex workers engaged in an intervention and evaluation study in northern Karnataka, India. Samvedana Plus seeks to understand and address violence in the intimate relationships of female sex workers and their increased vulnerability to HIV/AIDS.

Honour and prestige: The influence of social norms on child marriage and intimate partner violence in Karnataka, India - Ben Cislaghi and Parinita Bhattacharjee

What role do social norms play in intimate partner violence (IPV) and child marriage? This Learning Lab draws on the preliminary findings of two STRIVE evaluation studies: Samata and Samvedana+ implemented by the Karnataka Health Promotion Trust (KHPT).

Transactional Sex: What it is and why it matters

Adolescent girls, particularly in sub-Saharan Africa, are at high risk of HIV infection. Transactional sex seems to be a factor in shaping their vulnerability. But what is transactional sex exactly? What motivates young women and adolescent girls to engage in this practice? And what can we do to address the HIV risk involved?

Based on research and analysis by the STRIVE research consortium, this 7-minute video explains:

Honour and Prestige: The influence of social norms on violence against women and girls in Karnataka, South India

This qualitative paper draws on findings from Samata and Samvedana+, two STRIVE evaluation studies of norms interventions, implemented by the Karnataka Health Promotion Trust (KHPT).

Samata intervention briefs

Structural factors cut short the education of many adolescent girls belonging to scheduled caste and scheduled tribe families in northern Karnataka, India.

Keeping adolescent girls in secondary schools: Findings from the Samata baseline study

Launched in July 2012 by the Karnataka Health Promotion Trust (KHPT), the five-year Samata project aims to reduce vulnerability to HIV infection and improve the quality of life among adolescent Scheduled Caste/Scheduled Tribe (SC/ST) girls in Bijapur and Bagalkot districts. The project aims to do this by increasing rates of secondary school enrolment and completion.

Prevalence of intimate partner violence and abuse and associated factors among women enrolled into a cluster randomised trial in northwestern Tanzania

, ; Full research article online

Intimate partner violence (IPV) is recognised as an important public health and social problem, with far reaching consequences for women's physical and emotional health and social well-being. Furthermore, controlling behaviour by a partner has a similar impact on women's well-being, yet little is known about the prevalence of this type of behaviour and other related abuses in Tanzania and other sub-Saharan African countries.

The barriers and enablers to education among scheduled caste and scheduled tribe adolescent girls in northern Karnataka, South India: A qualitative study

, ; Read full paper online

This qualitative study explored the barriers and enablers to scheduled caste/scheduled tribe (SC/ST) adolescent girls entering into, and completing secondary education in northern Karnataka, South India.

In-depth interviews were conducted with 22 adolescent girls, their respective parent/guardian and 11 teachers, recruited purposively from 11 villages within two districts in northern Karnataka.

The study found that:

Friendship networks and HIV risk among young women in South Africa - Elizabeth Fearon

Friends could be an important influence on young women’s risk of acquiring HIV; they serve as a channel for dominant norms about gender and sexuality and are the social contacts through which young women form sexual partnerships. Research from other populations has found that the characteristics of adolescents’ friends can affect a range of health-related behaviours, including sexual behaviour.

Pages