What young people need:

• Information: Young people have the right to know about HIV and AIDS and how to protect themselves from the disease. It is important to provide this information to young people, both in and out of school and ideally before they become sexually active or use drugs. The full range of prevention options – covering the diversity of their sexual and substance abuse-related behaviours – should be available to young people.

• Life skills: Information in itself may not be enough to provoke behaviour change. Often young people need training to develop their abilities to make decisions, for example, or to communicate and negotiate effectively. Life skills-based education is an interactive process of teaching and learning which enables learners to acquire knowledge and to develop attitudes and skills that can support them throughout their lives. Armed with these skills, young people have a better chance to develop healthy lifestyles, negotiate abstinence and condom use, and avoid substance use.

• Youth friendly health services: Unless young people have ready access to services that are welcoming, affordable and non-judgmental, they may not get the care they need. Providing young people with access to youth-friendly health services such as voluntary counselling and testing, early diagnosis and treatment of sexually transmitted infections and or drug dependence, and anti-retroviral therapy is essential. Young people should also have access to life-saving commodities, such as condoms (male and female) and clean needles and syringes (to reduce harm for those who are injecting drugs).

• A safe and supportive environment: In order to effectively receive information, skills and services, young people need to be provided with an environment in which they are safe from harm, supported through caring and close relationships with families, and have opportunities for individual development. Policies and social norms help shape the environment young people encounter, and thus affect their vulnerability to HIV.

Learn More:
	Supporting Adolescents and Youth

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