Review of the Health Sector Response to HIV and AIDS in Indonesia 2007

The HIV epidemic in Indonesia is among the fastest growing in Asia although the aggregate HIV prevalence among adults (15-49 years of age) is still low (0.16%). An estimated 193,000 people were living with HIV as of 2006. The epidemic remains concentrated, in most parts of the country, among groups at high risk: populations sharing injecting equipment and engaging in unprotected sex.

The national commitment to respond effectively to the epidemic is strong. An impressive expansion of the response to the epidemic has been seen in the last two to three years but major disparities exist: geographical, the nature and size of the epidemic, health systems capacity, and available resources.

As part of the process of development of the National Strategic Plan on HIV/AIDS for 2007-2011, the Ministry of Health and the World Health Organization (WHO), in collaboration with a range of partners, organized, from 5 to 17 February 2007, a review of the health sector response to the HIV epidemic in Indonesia. The overall objective was to review progress in the national AIDS programme, especially in areas related to the health sector response, and recommend appropriate measures towards revision of interventions and strategies.