UNAIDS Inter-Agency Task Team on Education
FORTHCOMING EVENT: IATT SYMPOSIUM 2015
The UNAIDS Inter-Agency Task Team (IATT) on Education was created in 2002 to support accelerated and improved education sector responses to HIV. It is convened by UNESCO and includes UNAIDS cosponsoring agencies, other multilaterals, bilateral agencies, private donors, civil society, and academia.
The IATT members believe that education is the foundation for successful HIV programmes. Individuals need the requisite knowledge, attitudes, values and skills to adopt healthy behaviours to protect themselves from HIV infection, and to act against discrimination. HIV education has evolved; it has moved from being discussed as an isolated topic to being situated within the wider health education context. HIV education is increasingly part of a broad skills-based health education curriculum that is contextually and age-appropriate and addresses sexuality education, gender-based violence and substance use, among other issues that reduce HIV risk and promote the healthy development of learners.
The IATT promotes and supports good practices in HIV and health education by encouraging harmonisation and country-level actions, with the following expected outcomes:
- Increased leadership support and resource allocation for HIV and health education;
- Enhanced evidence base identifying good practice in HIV and health education; and
- Improved collaboration within and across agencies to support harmonized and cost-effective global and country-level actions.
The IATT holds symposia and meetings that are hosted by members globally,most recently in Cape Town, South Africa, Accra, Ghana, London, England, and Washington, DC. The IATT conducts research projects, develops tools and convenes working groups on advocacy, monitoring and evaluation, and other emerging topics deemed important by the membership. Published research and tools (please see Key Resources below) are distributed to ministries and development partners. Partners are supported to use the tools and act upon research findings so as to improve the effectiveness of national and global responses to HIV.
Key Resources
Recent Symposia Topics
- Good Quality Education for Adolescent Girls for an AIDS-Free Future
- Gender-Based Violence
- HIV and Health in Tertiary Education Settings
- Linkages between HIV and School Health and Nutrition
- Education system and the workplace
- Most-at-risk youth
- Sexuality education
- Social norms and collective behaviour
- Issues Concerning Teachers
Current members include
- Creative Associates International
- Education Development Center
- FHI 360
- GIZ
- Global Partnership for Education
- ILO
- The Partnership for Child Development
- UNAIDS
- UNESCO
- UNFPA
- UNICEF
- United States Agency for International Development
- University of the Western Cape
For further information or hardcopies, please contact the IATT Secretariat at UNESCO: info-iatt(at)unesco.org