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UNFPA is the lead UN agency for delivering a world where every pregnancy is wanted, every childbirth is safe and every young person's potential is fulfilled. UNFPA expands the possibilities for women and young people to lead healthy and productive lives. Since UNFPA started working in 1969, the number - and rate - of women dying from complications of p...
Background Information
Young people are considered to be a particularly vulnerable group to sexually transmitted infections including HIV (STI/HIV) as well as to high risk behaviors. They have limited access to adequate youth-friendly sexual reproductive health (RH) services and/or they are faced with resistance and/or unfriendly attitudes exhibited by service providers. Very often they rely on their peers and/or the internet for learning about the changes they go through, the answers to their health problems or advice for engaging in a relationship, among other information. In many cases, they end up being recipients of incorrect and inadequate information from inaccurate sources without any guidance. A research conducted by the International Organization for Migration (IOM) in Somalia in 2012 showed a significant level of misconceptions among young people with respect to transmission of HIV.
Significant numbers of young adolescent girls, who survived incidents of Gender based Violence (GBV), particularly sexual violence, face significant risk of contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases because of lack of knowledge about the infection and available GBV-related services. All of these challenges require understanding of young people’s attitudes and perceptions about their health-seeking behaviors. This information is fundamental for better responding to their needs and aspirations.
The existing data on the Somali HIV epidemic points towards a likely concentrated epidemic in high-risk populations that has neither been properly identified or addressed programmatically in the national response. The draft 2016 antenatal clinic (ANC) data showed HIV prevalence of 0.07% in the South-Central part of the country, 0.29% in Puntland, and 0.48% (in Somaliland). The HIV prevalence among women aged 15-24 was 0.24% across the country, breaking down as 0.70% in Somaliland, 0.12% in Puntland, and 0.10% in the South Central part of Somalia.
STI prevalence is surprisingly high for a low-prevalence country, indicating that high-risk behaviours are taking place. Anecdotal accounts and the completion of two research studies integrated biological and behavioural survey (IBBS) and size estimation by IOM and partners point towards existence of certain populations at higher risk of HIV, including women engaged in transactional sex, their clients, transport workers (truck drivers and port workers), and other groups at increased risk of HIV.
The 2012 Youth Behavioural Survey identified very low rates of knowledge among young women and men. Only 8.7% of the young men and 13.4% of the young women surveyed were able to correctly identify ways of preventing sexual transmission of HIV and rejected major misconceptions. Overall, 9.2% of young women and 21.2% of young men considered themselves at risk of being living with HIV. Of those surveyed, 0% of young women had ever had sex, and 10.8% of young men had had sex. Of the young men who had had sex, 1.3% had done so prior to the age of 15 and 2.6% had more than one partner. Approximately 35% of these had used a condom during their last intercourse.
The Strategic Framework for the Somali AIDS Response (2018-2020) is focused on achieving two primary goals:
UNFPA has been working in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention among young people in Somalia since 2007, with a pool of peer educators doing health education in schools and outreach at community level for out-of-school youth.
Purpose of the assignment
The Research Assistant will support the lead researcher to conceptually develop, conduct and analyse the results of a community-based survey that will assess and measure the knowledge, attitudes, behaviors and practices of young people at higher risk of HIV and those in schools.
The study will also look at changing patterns among young people and sex groups, of different regions, to establish levels of sexual experience (age of first sex, forced sex and coercion), characteristic of sexual activity (partners, condom usage, alcohol and drug use, and transactional sex), educational level, HIV knowledge, communication and perceived risk, testing and exposure to interventions.
The study will also assess their preferred channels and sources of information towards planning and tailoring effective communication and advocacy interventions with maximum reach and impact. The outcome of this assignment should result in:
Description of the Assignment
Expected Outputs
The following deliverables are expected to be provided by the lead consultant and research assistant by the end of the assignment, in English:
Payment Schedule
Project Timeline
Final report delivered by 31 October 2018.
Qualifications and Competencies
Qualifications
Education
Other requirement
Interested candidates are requested to register in our roster through the link below: and to send their expression of interest, curriculum vitae and information on previous similar work to somalia.recruit@unfpa.org on or before by Thursday 27 July, 2018.
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