Baseline assessment: Preparing for the Implementation of IOM’s Health Promotion Projects across Southern Africa

This report is a consolidation of the findings from baseline assessments carried out by IOM’s PHAMSA Pilot Projects implementing partners in Lesotho and Mozambique (TEBA Development), Namibia (Walvis Bay Multi Purpose Centre), South Africa (Hoedspruit Training Trust), Swaziland (Royal Swaziland Sugar Corporation) and Zambia (CHAMP and Global Development Alliance companies). It reviews the HIV-related knowledge, attitudes, behaviours and practices of labour migrants working in the fishing, commercial agriculture and mining sectors.

Content:

• Executive summary
• Introduction: Mobile populations and HIV in southern Africa; IOM’s Partnership on HIV and Mobility in southern Africa; Rationale of the Assessment
• Methodology: Study design; Mini survey; Focus group discussions; Field data collection and management; Stakeholder involvement; Data Analysis
• Findings and Analysis: Socio-demographic characteristics of respondents; Environmental factors; Knowledge, attitudes, behaviours, practice and perceptions; Risk and vulnerability within the context of mobility and migration;  Relationship between gender and HIV risk and vulnerability;
• Conclusions:  General; Limitation of the assessment;  Socio demographic information; HIV knowledge, attitudes, behaviours and perceptions;  HIV risk, vulnerability within the context of migrants and mobility ; HIV risk, vulnerability and gender; Environmental factors
• Recommendations for planning and prioritized actions: Recommendations with respect to content; Knowledge on HIV and AIDS; Prevention of HIV; HIV testing; Stigma reduction; Gender; Running effective workplace programmes; Tuberculosis; Male circumcision
• Recommendations with respect to the PHAMSA Pilot Projects: Focus and strengthening of PHAMSA Pilot Project; Information system
• Strengthening of future assessments: Methodology and data collection; Building research capacity
• Future research agenda: Conduct additional mapping exercise; Issues related to sexual behaviour