Gender and monitoring the response to HIV/AIDS pandemic

The mechanisms, techniques, and data sources used to monitor and evaluate global AIDS prevention and treatment services may vary according to gender. The Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS has been charged with tracking the response to the pandemic by using a set of indicators developed as part of the Declaration of Commitment endorsed at the U.N. General Assembly Special Session on AIDS in 2001. Statistics on prevalence and incidence indicate that the pandemic has increasingly affected women during the past decade. Women's biologic, cultural, economic, and social status can increase their likelihood of becoming infected with HIV.