Sexual and reproductive health of adolescents ages.

The Government of the Republic of Zambia, through the Central Statistical Office and the Ministry of Health, National AIDS Council, and the University of Zambia, with technical assistance from MEASURE Evaluation, conducted the 2009 national Zambia Sexual Behaviour Survey, the fifth in a series of such surveys to monitor knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors regarding HIV/AIDS in Zambia.

The survey obtained national estimates of a number of key indicators (including international standardized indicators) important to monitoring progress of the national HIV/AIDS/STDs program. It provides indicators on HIV/AIDS /STI-related knowledge, attitudes, and sexual behavior, as well as information on orphans and vulnerable children, and assistance to households and communities affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic.

In the past several years, there has been a growing international dialogue on the feasibility and desirability of providing integrated family planning (FP) and HIV services. The reasons for offering joint, complementary services are many. Adding FP services to counseling and testing might provide an opportunity to reach populations that do not typically attend FP clinics, such as the sexually active young and unmarried, men, and members of high-risk groups such as sex workers. Adding FP services to care and treatment might facilitate the uptake of contraception by HIV-positive individuals, helping to maintain their health, plan safer pregnancies, and reduce the rate of mother-tochild transmission of HIV. Including HIV services, particularly counseling and testing, in FP services would allow earlier diagnosis and referral to care and treatment. This study was undertaken to provide a "snapshot" of early integration eff orts, in order to provide the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) and national programs with information needed to improve integrated services.

While the last two decades have seen improvements in access to and utilization of sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services, progress in many countries has been slow and - after decades of investments - disappointing. Social activists and health analysts have highlighted the potential role that persistent inequities in health play in hindering progress towards achieving international and national development goals. Health inequity is defined as "inequalities in health deemed to be unfair or to stem from some form of injustice. The dimensions of being avoidable or unnecessary have often been added to this concept. A primary concern of public health programmes is the existence of disparities in access to and utilization of health services and information. Data from population-based surveys document that women from the poorest households are less likely to use preventive and curative sexual and reproductive health services and products than women from the wealthiest households including use of modern contraceptives, antenatal care, skilled attendance at birth, and seek treatment for self-reported symptoms of sexually transmitted infection.

Mobilizing the resources to reach the International Conference on Population and Development (ICPD) and Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target of universal access to reproductive health by 2015 is essential if international development goals are to be realized. The challenge before the international community-donors and developing countries alike-is to move from declarations of good intentions to active partnerships and investments. Country Profiles for Population and Reproductive Health: Policy Developments and Indicators 2009/2010 provides an abundance of easy-to-access information that can be helpful in building the case for increased resources.