This guidance note is intended to guide countries on how to include a gender perspective and promote equality and human rights for women and girls in their national HIV responses, drawing upon the latest technical developments, guidelines and investment approaches. The inclusion of a gender perspective for women and girls into national HIV responses is important because they continue to be profoundly affected by HIV. As such, addressing their needs is a prerequisite to effectively responding to the epidemic. This brief, which seeks to support a gender-responsive HIV response, is a first step towards the application of key tools and resources that help integrate gender considerations into concept notes, proposals, and national strategic plans.

Violence against women and girls is an unacceptable violation of basic human rights. It also is so widespread that ending it must be a global public health priority. An estimated one in three women is beaten, coerced into sex or otherwise abused by an intimate partner during her lifetime. Intimate partner violence has been shown to increase the risk of HIV infection by around 50%, and violence (and the fear of violence) deters women and girls from seeking services for HIV prevention, treatment, care and support.

After more than 30 years of the HIV epidemic—and an unprecedented medical and social response—discrimination, violence, harmful gender norms and related stigma continue to pose challenges to an effective HIV response. The findings of these assessments indicate that gender-related barriers pose significant obstacles to the uptake of services that prevent new HIV infections among children and keep mothers alive—obstacles that require urgent attention. Without dedicated attempts to overcome these gender-related barriers, current efforts will meet with limited success, and the needs and rights of both women and children will remain compromised.

Women may make up half the world’s population, but they do not share it equally. This is especially evident when it comes to HIV. Half of all people living with HIV are women, yet many are underserved or do not know their status. Despite the many successes we have seen, women still face inequalities that will keep the AIDS response from reaching its full potential.

The Gender assessment tool for national HIV responses is intended to assist countries assess their HIV epidemic, context and response from a gender perspective, helping them to make their HIV responses gender transformative and (as such) more effective. The Tool is specifically designed to support the development or review of national strategic plans (NSP) and to inform submissions to both country investment cases and the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM).