Papua New Guinea

With 1.5 percent of the adult population estimated by the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) to be HIV positive in 2007, Papua New Guinea is experiencing a generalized epidemic. Although this new prevalence rate is significantly lower than the 2005 UNAIDS estimate of 1.8 percent, it is considered to reflect improvements in surveillance rather than a shrinking epidemic. Excluding the high-income countries of Australia and New Zealand, Papua New Guinea accounted for more than 99 percent of reported HIV diagnoses in the UNAIDS Oceania region in 2007. Reversing the pattern typically seen, HIV prevalence in Papua New Guinea is higher in rural areas than in urban settings. Males and females are equally likely to become infected, with the risk of infection growing among young women, particularly those aged 20 to 24. While most epidemics in the region appear to be stable, new infections in Papua New Guinea are on the rise. By the end of 2007, UNAIDS estimated 54,000 people in Papua New Guinea were HIV positive.

USAID’s HIV program, working in collaboration with other donors, assisted the host government in building capacity to scale up public and community-based HIV prevention, care, and treatment models to halt the spread of the disease and mitigate its negative effects on society. Specifically, the program supported activities under a comprehensive prevention package focused on reducing HIV prevalence in at-risk groups and preventing the further spread of HIV in the general population. Most other donors support activities that are targeted more at the general population. The program also leveraged the resources of major donors to either replicate USAID models or support components of the models where USAID funds were lacking.

View the full USAID HIV/AIDS Health Profile for Papua New Guinea - November 2010 [PDF, 148KB]