Migration and mobility have long been recognized as affecting the spread of HIV infection. Highly mobile populations such as transport and construction workers and migrant laborers are a key focus for HIV prevention and treatment efforts, but these groups can be difficult to reach through traditional programs.
Lack of a stable health service environment and constant movement away from support networks complicate issues of continuity in care and adherence to prevention and treatment activities for mobile groups. More research is needed to understand the links between migration and HIV in order to design policies to protect migrants and their sexual partners. Evaluation of existing programs targeting mobile populations with prevention and health services also is required to design more effective HIV prevention programs and services to reach these populations.
Population Council focus
Council researchers are building evidence on the connection between migration and mobility and the spread of HIV infection and are designing and evaluating interventions that target mobile populations with appropriate health and HIV prevention services.
Population Council impact
- A recent landmark study by the Population Council, the first of its kind in India, examined the role of migration in HIV transmission. Council researchers found that in areas from which men migrate to find work, one-half to three-quarters of HIV infections among both men and women can be attributed to transmission from male migrants. In response to the study's findings, the Council worked closely with India’s government and other partners to overhaul national policies and programs aimed at reaching people who migrate in search of work.
- A Council study of migrants in inner-city Johannesburg found that lack of information among healthcare providers, xenophobic attitudes, unavailability of client medical history/records from previous consultations, legal status, and use of traditional medicine impede migrants’ access to treatment. These findings informed an effort to assist migrant communities with small grants and advocacy training to enhance their access to HIV and other services.
Future directions
- As part of the Men’s Health Network Nigeria, the Council is targeting transit workers with health services.
- In Ethiopia, the Council has implemented a project that assists adolescent girls, including rural-urban migrants, domestic workers, and orphans, in urban slum areas of Addis Ababa, Tigray, and Amhara by creating safe spaces where they can meet friends, build support networks with other girls, and form relationships with supportive adults. Once the girls are in a group, the project provides basic literacy, life skills, financial literacy and savings, and HIV/reproductive health education through girls' clubs led by adult female mentors.
- Another project in Ethiopia, aims to determine whether a psychosocial intervention for vulnerable marginalized migrant girls and boys improves their responsiveness to HIV programs.
Projects
Documenting Avahan, the India AIDS Initiative (more)
The Population Council is synthesizing and analyzing the wealth of data collected by Avahan to gain insight that will guide future initiatives for HIV prevention in India and other countries with similar concentrated epidemics.
(1/2009 - 1/2014)
India
Men’s Health Network Nigeria: Providing Appropriate and Comprehensive Sexual Health and HIV Prevention Services (more)
The Men’s Health Network Nigeria seeks to ensure that all men in Nigeria receive appropriate, comprehensive sexual health and HIV prevention services and targets populations considered most at risk.
(10/2008 - 10/2013)
Nigeria
Resources
Documentation of HIV prevention research and programmatic learnings from India (PDF)
Selected peer-reviewed journal publications from the Knowledge Network Project, Volume 1
Publication date: 2013
Evaluating the McDonald's business model for HIV prevention among truckers to improve program coverage and service utilization in India, 2004-2010 (abstract) (HTML)
Rao,Vasudha Tirumalasetti; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Juneja,Sachin; Singh,Indra Ramayash
HIV/AIDS - Research and Palliative Care 5: 51-60
Publication date: 2013
Girls on the move: Adolescent girls & migration in the developing world (PDF)
Temin,Miriam; Montgomery,Mark R.; Engebretsen,Sarah; Barker,Kathryn M.
A Girls Count Report on Adolescent Girls
Publication date: 2013
Impact of an HIV prevention intervention on condom use among long distance truckers in India (abstract) (PDF)
Juneja,Sachin; Tirumalasetti,Vasudha Rao; Mishra,Ram Manohar; Sethu,Shekhar; Singh,Indra Ramayash
AIDS and Behavior 17(3): 1040-1051
Publication date: 2013
Male migrants' non-spousal sexual partnerships in the place of origin: An in-depth investigation in two rural settings of India (abstract) (HTML)
Ganju,Deepika; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Saggurti,Niranjan
Culture, Health and Sexuality 15(3): 341-357
Publication date: 2013
"The Population Council's HIV and AIDS program," fact sheet (PDF)
Population Council
Publication date: 2012
Filles Eveillées ('Girls awakened'): A pilot program for migrant adolescent girls in domestic service in urban Burkina Faso (PDF)
Engebretsen,Sarah; Kabore,Gisele; Jarvis,Leah
Publication date: 2012
Filles Eveillées : Programme pilote pour adolescentes migrantes employées de maison au Burkina Faso urbain (PDF)
Engebretsen,Sarah; Kabore,Gisele; Jarvis,Leah
Publication date: 2012
Baseline and endline findings of Filles Eveillées ('Girls awakened'): A pilot program for migrant adolescent girls in domestic service. Cohort 1 (2011-2012), Bobo-Dioulasso (PDF)
Engebretsen,Sarah
Publication date: 2012
Council research improves HIV policy for male migrants in India (PDF)
Population Briefs 18(1)
Publication date: 2012
Évaluation de processus : Programme Filles eveilées pour adolescentes migrantes employées de maison au Burkina Faso urbain 2012 (PDF)
Jarvis,Leah; Kabore,Gisele
Publication date: 2012
Heading towards the Safer Highways: An assessment of the Avahan prevention programme among long distance truck drivers in India (abstract) (HTML)
Pandey,Arvind; Mishra,Ram Manohar; Sahu,Damodar; Benara,Sudhir K.; Sengupta,Uttpal; Paranjape,Ramesh S.; Abhishek,Gautam; Lenka,Satya R.; Adhikary,Rajatshurva
BMC Public Health 11(suppl 6): S15-
Publication date: 2012
Indicators of mobility, socio-economic vulnerabilities and HIV risk behaviours among mobile female sex workers in India (abstract) (PDF) (HTML)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Jain,Anrudh K.; Sebastian,Mary Philip; Singh,Rajendra; Reddy Modugu,Hanimi; Halli,Shiva S.; Verma,Ravi K.
AIDS and Behavior 16(4): 952-959
Publication date: 2012
Male out-migration: A factor for the spread of HIV infection among married men and women in rural India (abstract) (HTML)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Sabarwal,Shrutika; Ghosh,Subash; Johri,Aradhana
PLoS ONE 7(9): e43222-
Publication date: 2012
Observations initiales et finales de Filles eveillées : Programme pilote de renforcement des compétences des adolescentes migrantes employées de maison. Cohorte 1 (2011-2012), Bobo-Dioulasso (PDF)
Engebretsen,Sarah
Publication date: 2012
Process evaluation: The Filles Eveillées ('Girls awakened') program for migrant adolescent girls in domestic service in urban Burkina Faso (PDF)
Jarvis,Leah; Kabore,Gisele
Publication date: 2012
Relationship between mobility, violence and HIV/STI among female sex workers in Andhra Pradesh, India (abstract) (PDF) (HTML)
Ramesh,Sowmya; Ganju,Deepika; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Mishra,Ram Manohar; Saggurti,Niranjan
BMC Public Health 12: 764-
Publication date: 2012
Réseaux sociaux et les capacités financières des filles employées de maison à Bobo-Dioulasso (PDF)
Kabore,Gisele
Publication date: 2012
The association between adolescent entry into the trucking industry and risk of HIV among long-distance truck drivers in India (abstract) (HTML)
Mishra,Ram Manohar; Dube,Madhulika; Saggurti,Niranjan; Pandey,Arvind; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Ramesh,Sowmya
HIV/AIDS - Research and Palliative Care 4: 141-148
Publication date: 2012
Understanding out-migration among female sex workers in South India (abstract) (HTML)
Banandur,Pradeep; Ramanaik,Satyanarayana; Manhart,Lisa E.; Buzdugan,Raluca; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Isac,Shajy; Halli,Shiva S.; Washington,Reynold G.; Moses,Stephen; Blanchard,James F.
Sexually Transmitted Diseases 39(10): 776-783
Publication date: 2012
Experience of violence and adverse reproductive health outcomes, HIV risks among mobile female sex workers in India (abstract) (PDF)
Swain,Suvakanta N.; Saggurti,Niranjan; Battala,Madhusudana; Verma,Ravi K.; Jain,Anrudh K.
BMC Public Heath 11: 357-
Publication date: 2011
Harsh realities: Reasons for women's involvement in sex work in India (abstract) (PDF)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Sabarwal,Shagun; Verma,Ravi K.; Halli,Shiva S.; Jain,Anrudh K.
Journal of AIDS and HIV Research 3(9): 172-179
Publication date: 2011
HIV integrated biological and behavioural surveillance survey (IBBSS) 2010 (PDF)
Federal Ministry of Health
Publication date: 2011
HIV transmission among married men and women in districts with high out-migration in India: Study brief (PDF)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Battala,Madhusudana; Chawla,Umesh; Narang,Alka
Publication date: 2011
Male migration and risky sexual behavior in rural India: is the place of origin critical for HIV prevention programs? (abstract) (HTML)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Jain,Anrudh K.
BMC Public Health 11(suppl 6): S6-
Publication date: 2011
Migration and HIV in India: Study of select districts (PDF)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Battala,Madhusudana; Narang,Alka; Chawla,Umesh
Publication date: 2011
Motivations for entry into sex work and HIV risk among mobile female sex workers in India (abstract) (HTML)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Verma,Ravi K.; Halli,Shiva S.; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Singh,Rajendra; Reddy Modugu,Hanimi; RamaRao,Saumya; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Jain,Anrudh K.
Journal of Biosocial Science 43(5): 535-554
Publication date: 2011
Relationship between reported prior condom use and current self-perceived risk of acquiring HIV among mobile female sex workers in southern India (abstract) (HTML)
Jain,Anrudh K.; Saggurti,Niranjan; Mahapatra,Bidhubhusan; Sebastian,Mary Philip; Modugu,Hanimi R.; Halli,Shiva S.; Verma,Ravi K.
BMC Public Health 11(suppl 6): S5-
Publication date: 2011
Sex trafficking and initiation-related violence, alcohol use, and HIV risk among HIV-infected female sex workers in Mumbai, India (abstract) (PDF) (HTML)
Silverman,Jay G.; Raj,Anita; Cheng,Debbie M.; Decker,Michele R.; Coleman,Sharon; Bridden,Carly; Pardeshi,Manoj; Saggurti,Niranjan; Samet,Jeffrey H.
Journal of Infectious Diseases 204(suppl 5): S1229-S1234
Publication date: 2011
Alcohol and sexual risk behavior among migrant female sex workers and male workers in districts with high in-migration from four high HIV prevalence states in India (abstract) (HTML)
Verma,Ravi K.; Saggurti,Niranjan; Singh,Ajay Kumar; Swain,Suvakanta N.
AIDS and Behavior 14(suppl 1): 31-39
Publication date: 2010
HIV/STI risk among male Mexican immigrants in Dallas, Texas: Findings from a pilot study (abstract) (HTML)
Wilson,Kate S.; Eggleston,Elizabeth; Diaz-Olavarrieta,Claudia; Garcia,Sandra G.
Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health 12(6): 947-951
Publication date: 2010
Health-seeking behavior and access to HIV treatment amongst migrants in the inner city of Johannesburg, South Africa (PDF)
Brochure
Publication date: 2009
Migration, mobility and sexual risk behavior in Mumbai, India: Mobile men with non-residential wife show increased risk (abstract) (HTML)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Schensul,Stephen L.; Verma,Ravi K.
AIDS and Behavior 13(5): 921-927
Publication date: 2009
Needs assessment of marginalised, socially excluded immigrant populations in Johannesburg, South Africa (PDF)
Research summary
Publication date: 2009
Strengthening sexual and reproductive health and rights services for migrants in inner city, Johannesburg, South Africa (PDF)
Project summary
Publication date: 2009
HIV risk behaviours among contracted and non-contracted male migrant workers in India: Potential role of labor contractors and contractual systems in HIV prevention (abstract) (HTML)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Verma,Ravi K.; Jain,Anrudh K.; RamaRao,Saumya; Kumar,Anil K.; Subbiah,Anjaneyalu; Reddy Modugu,Hanimi; Halli,Shiva S.; Bharat,Shalini
AIDS 22(suppl 5): S127-S136
Publication date: 2008
HIV-related stigma, service utilization, and status disclosure among truck drivers crossing the Southern borders in Brazil (abstract) (HTML)
Pulerwitz,Julie; Michaelis,Annie P.; Lippman,Sheri A.; Chinaglia,Magda; Diaz,Juan
AIDS Care 20(7): 764-770
Publication date: 2008
Migration/mobility and vulnerability to HIV among male migrant workers: Andhra Pradesh 2007-08 (PDF)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Jain,Anrudh K.; RamaRao,Saumya; Reddy Modugu,Hanimi; Singh,Ajay Kumar; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Verma,Ravi K.
Publication date: 2008
Migration/mobility and vulnerability to HIV among male migrant workers: Karnataka 2007-08 (PDF)
Halli,Shiva S.; Buzdugan,Raluca; Saggurti,Niranjan; Verma,Ravi K.; Moses,Stephen; Blanchard,James; Jain,Anrudh K.; RamaRao,Saumya; Singh,Ajay Kumar; Swain,Suvakanta N.
Publication date: 2008
Migration/mobility and vulnerability to HIV among male migrant workers: Maharashtra 2007-08 (PDF)
Kumar,K.Anil; Bharat,Shalini; Saggurti,Niranjan; Verma,Ravi K.; Jain,Anrudh K.; RamaRao,Saumya; Mukherjee,Kanchan; Singh,Ajay Kumar; Swain,Suvakanta N.
Publication date: 2008
Migration/mobility and vulnerability to HIV among male migrant workers: Tamil Nadu 2007-08 (PDF)
Subbiah,Anjaneyalu; Ramachandran,S.; Ravi Shankar,A.K.; Saggurti,Niranjan; Verma,Ravi K.; Jain,Anrudh K.; RamaRao,Saumya; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Singh,Ajay Kumar
Publication date: 2008
Patterns of migration/mobility and HIV risk among female sex workers: Andhra Pradesh 2007-08 (PDF)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Verma,Ravi K.; Reddy Modugu,Hanimi; RamaRao,Saumya; Singh,Ajay Kumar; Mahendra,Vaishali Sharma; Jain,Anrudh K.
Publication date: 2008
Patterns of migration/mobility and HIV risk among female sex workers: Karnataka 2007-08 (PDF)
Halli,Shiva S.; Buzdugan,Raluca; Verma,Ravi K.; Moses,Stephen; Blanchard,James; Jain,Anrudh K.; RamaRao,Saumya; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Saggurti,Niranjan
Publication date: 2008
Patterns of migration/mobility and HIV risk among female sex workers: Maharashtra 2007-08 (PDF)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Mahendra,Vaishali Sharma; Singh,Rajendra; RamaRao,Saumya; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Singh,Ajay Kumar; Jain,Anrudh K.; Verma,Ravi K.
Publication date: 2008
Patterns of migration/mobility and HIV risk among female sex workers: Tamil Nadu 2007-08 (PDF)
Saggurti,Niranjan; Verma,Ravi K.; Swain,Suvakanta N.; Reddy Modugu,Hanimi; Singh,Ajay Kumar; RamaRao,Saumya; Jain,Anrudh K.
Publication date: 2008
Addressing the needs of seasonal migrants in Nashik, Maharashtra (PDF)
Borhade,Anjali B.
Health and Population Innovation Fellowship Programme Working Paper (no. 2)
Publication date: 2007
Comprehensive program successfully decreases HIV risk behaviors (PDF)
Population Briefs 13(2)
Publication date: 2007
Mobility and its liminal context: Exploring sexual partnering among truck drivers crossing the Southern Brazilian border (abstract) (HTML)
Lippman,Sheri A.; Pulerwitz,Julie; Chinaglia,Magda; Hubbard,Alan E.; Reingold,Arthur; Diaz,Juan
Social Science and Medicine 65(12): 2464-2473
Publication date: 2007
Reaching truckers in Brazil with non-stigmatizing and effective HIV/STI services (PDF)
Chinaglia,Magda; Lippman,Sheri A.; Pulerwitz,Julie; de Mello,Maeve; Homan,Rick; Diaz,Juan
Horizons Research Summary
Publication date: 2007
Reaching truckers in Brazil with non-stigmatizing and effective HIV/STI services (PDF)
Chinaglia,Magda; Lippman,Sheri A.; Pulerwitz,Julie; de Mello,Maeve; Homan,Rick; Diaz,Juan
Horizons Final Report
Publication date: 2007
Support by migrants to their elderly parents in rural Cambodia and Thailand: A comparative study (PDF)
Zimmer,Zachary; Korinek,Kim; Knodel,John; Chayovan,Napaporn
Poverty, Gender, and Youth Working Paper (no. 2)
Publication date: 2007
Context and dynamics of male-to-male sexual behavior of truckers in India: Findings from a multi-site qualitative research study (PDF)
Verma,Ravi K.; Mahendra,Vaishali Sharma; Pelto,Pertti J.; Pradhan,Sarat Chandra; Singh,Vibha
Research Brief
Publication date: 2006
Context and dynamics of same-sex behavior among long-distance truckers in India: Findings from qualitative research (PDF)
Mahendra,Vaishali Sharma; Verma,Ravi K.; Pelto,Pertti J.; Pradhan,Sarat Chandra; Singh,Vibha; Rao,Asha; Vij,Tarun
Publication date: 2006
'Projonon shastho shomporke janun poribar choto rakhun jownorog protirodh korun' [Know about reproductive health and keep family small, and prevent from getting STIs and HIV/AIDS] -- Flipchart for educating rickshaw pullers
Bhuiya,Ismat; Altaf,Syed Asif; Naznin,Nina; Zahiduzzaman,K.M.
Publication date: 2005
Reducing the transmission of HIV and sexually transmitted infections in a mining community: Findings from the Carletonville Mothusimpilo intervention project: 1998 to 2001 (PDF)
Ndhlovu,Lewis; Searle,Catherine; van Dam,C.Johannes; Mzaidume,Yodwa; Rasego,Bareng; Moema,Solly
Horizons Final Report
Publication date: 2005
Risk of sexually transmitted infections among migrant men: Findings from a survey in Delhi (abstract) (HTML)
Mishra,Anurag
Asian and Pacific Migration Journal 13(1): 89-106
Publication date: 2004
Expanding workplace HIV prevention programs for a highly mobile population in Ho Chi Minh City (PDF)
Vu Ngoc Bao; Guest,Philip; Pulerwitz,Julie; Le Thuy Lan Thao; Duong Xuan Dinh; Tran Thi Kim Xuyen; Levin,Ann
Horizons Research Summary
Publication date: 2003
Expanding workplace HIV/AIDS prevention activities for a highly mobile population: Construction workers in Ho Chi Minh City (PDF)
Vu Ngoc Bao; Guest,Philip; Pulerwitz,Julie; Le Thuy Lan Thao; Duong Xuan Dinh; Tran Thi Kim Xuyen; Levin,Ann
Horizons project report
Publication date: 2003
The effects of migration and work on marriage of female garment workers in Bangladesh (abstract) (HTML)
Naved,Ruchira Tabassum; Newby,Margaret; Amin,Sajeda
International Journal of Population Geography 7(2): 91-104
Publication date: 2001
The natural history of HIV/AIDS in a major goldmining centre in South Africa: Results of a biomedical and social survey (abstract)
Gilgen,D.; Williams,Brian G.; MacPhail,Catherine; van Dam,C.Johannes; Campbell,Catherine; Ballard,Ron; Taljaard,Dirk
South African Journal of Science 97(9/10): 387-392
Publication date: 2001
Mobility transitions within a global system: Migration in the ESCAP region (abstract)
Guest,Philip
Asia-Pacific Population Journal 14(4): 57-72
Publication date: 1999
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