Political Prioritisation of the Prevention and Control of STIs

What drives the position of sexually transmitted infections on global policy agendas?

Project Summary

Sexually transmitted infections (STI) are not only a neglected public health problem but also a societal one. One million new curable STIs occur every day in the world, mostly in low – and middle – income countries. STIs, such as syphilis, chlamydia and gonorrhoea may have serious complications, especially for women’s reproductive health. Others, such as human papillomavirus, can cause cancer. Even though effective interventions to prevent and treat STI exist, neither governments nor other policy makers give them high priority or grant investments in their prevention.

This project is structured around three questions:

  • What are the factors that influence the political prioritisation of STIs as a global health issue?
  • What is the total global burden of disease caused by STI, based on statistical methods to combining data from different sources?
  • What are community views about STI in pregnancy?

The methods employed in the project include policy analysis, estimations of the total global burden of disease as well as interviews with pregnant women and key informants in Papua New Guinea and Zambia. Gender will be one of the main research lenses while examining these questions.

This project’s findings will help public health officials make the changes needed to prioritise the prevention and control of STI worldwide.

Research Team

Nicola Low
Coordinator
University of Bern

Eva Cignacco Müller
Co-Coordinator
Bern University of Applied Sciences

Hira Imeri
Principal Member
University of Zurich

 

Sarah Hawkes
Principal Member
University College London

Angela Kelly-Hanku
Principal Member
Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research

Wu Dadong
Principal Member
Independent Consultant

Mae A Dirac
Principal Member
University of Washington

Kelvin Kapungu
Principal Member
Tropical Research Centre, Zambia

 

 

Andrew Vallely
Associated Member
Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research

Matthew Chico
Associated Member
London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine

William Pomat
Associated Member
Papua New Guinea Institute of Medical Research

Status

ongoing

Disciplines

SDGs

Policy domains

Regions

Countries

Papua New Guinea, Zambia, China

Host Institution

Coordinator

Co-Coordinator

Year