El Salvador
With less than 1 percent of its adult population reported to be HIV positive, El Salvador is a low-HIV-prevalence country, but the virus remains a significant threat in groups who practice high-risk behaviors, such as commercial sex workers and men who have sex with men. Overall prevalence has increased since the first case was detected in 1984. El Salvador has the second-largest number of people living with HIV/AIDS in Central America, behind Guatemala. As of November 2009, 23,731 HIV/AIDS cases have been reported in the country (National HIV/AIDS Program of the Ministry of Health). The Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) estimates that in 2007, 35,000 Salvadorans were living with HIV (UNAIDS 2008 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic). Incidence appears to have declined since 2004, but there is a fear that HIV/AIDS cases are underreported due to lack of an effective monitoring system.
In March 2010, the U.S. Government and the Council of Ministers of Health of Central America met in San José, Costa Rica, to sign a Partnership Framework, which outlines a jointly developed strategy to support the Central American regional response to HIV/AIDS. The Partnership Framework provides a five-year strategic plan that will be implemented by the USG and the governments and civil society of the seven countries in the region: Belize, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Panama. The Framework describes the coordination of key regional stakeholders to support the goals of the countries’ regional and national HIV/AIDS programs, in addition to contributing to the goals of PEPFAR.
View the full USAID HIV/AIDS Health Profile for El Salvador - September 2010 [PDF, 87KB]
Related Links
|
