HIV / AIDS and mobile populations in the Caribbean: a baseline assessment. Final report.

Given the high level of population movement and the high prevalence of HIV infection in the Caribbean the link between mobility and the spread of HIV/AIDS is an important dimension of the region’s epidemic. According to the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) HIV/AIDS now affects more than 2% of the population in Bahamas Belize Dominican Republic Guyana Haiti and Trinidad and Tobago. The Caribbean now ranks second only to sub-Saharan Africa as the most affected region in the world. Many of the same factors that drive the spread of HIV/AIDS also drive migration such as unbalanced distribution of resources unemployment political instability and conflict. Though migrants are sometimes perceived as contributing to the spread of HIV/AIDS across borders studies have shown that migrants are often more vulnerable than local populations and face greater obstacles in accessing care and support if living with HIV/AIDS. The circumstances of movement – e.g. whether voluntary or involuntary or whether legal or clandestine – directly affect the potential risk of HIV- infection for migrants. A better understanding of the interaction between HIV/AIDS and population movements in the Caribbean is essential in order to develop effective AIDS intervention strategies. (excerpt)