Stronger support urged for adolescent AIDS

The UN Population Fund (UNFPA) has warned that meeting adolescent needs, especially in terms of sex education, should become an "urgent priority" for developing countries, to break the cycle of HIV/AIDS and poverty. In its latest report, "State of The World Population 2003", UNFPA said half of all people across the globe were under the age of 25, and youth accounted for nearly half the new HIV infections. This was in large part because information or skills were not available to adolescents, to enable them to avoid the HIV/AIDS pandemic. "The costs of failing to support young people will have serious consequences ... [that] range from premature deaths, higher rates of sexually transmitted infections and unwanted pregnancies, to slower economic growth," the Fund said. The report called for the core HIV/AIDS prevention message of "ABC" - Abstain from sexual activity, Be faithful to one partner, and use Condoms correctly and consistently - to be widely disseminated and emphasised.