STRIVE Tackling the structural drivers of HIV

Hazardous alcohol use contributes to the acquisition of HIV through sexual risk and speeds the progression of the disease.

Strategies exist to successfully reduce the harms caused by hazardous alcohol use, including HIV, but these have focused on individual-level interventions while neglecting the powerful role of unfettered alcohol availability, low prices and heavy advertising and promotion in low- and middle-income countries. 

Long-term and sustainable reductions in hazardous alcohol use require structural interventiosn free of influence from the alcohol industry and with buy-in from multiple sectors. These structural interventions have potential to yield returns across a range of Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and are thus a 'best buy' for achieving long-term population-level improvements in health and economic wellbeing.

This brief draws together existing evidence on the linkages between harmful alcohol use and HIV and assesses the impact STRIVE have had on national policy-making processes in Tanzania and South Africa.