MOZAMBIQUE- National Consultation on Responses to HIV in the Road Transport Sector
 On 12 May 2010, IOM hosted a country consultation in Maputo, Mozambique on HIV dynamics and responses in the road transport sector.
The consultation, which was co-hosted by the Government of Mozambique’s Ministry of Transport and Communications, the International Labour Organization and the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, brought together key players from the government, private sector, civil society, trade unions, UN agencies and donors in Mozambique, to share best practices in responding to HIV in the road transport sector.
Improved road and rail infrastructure in Mozambique including the establishment of the Maputo, Beira and Nacala corridors is rapidly expanding the transport sector and increasingly linking the country with its neighbours. This has not only led to a boom in truck traffic at border posts, but has also resulted in long border-crossing delays where drivers can spend up to two days waiting for documentation clearance.
It is anticipated that this trend may also lead to a spike in transactional sex at the checkpoints, and to the prevalence of multiple concurrent sexual partnerships, which is one of the primary factors in the spread of HIV in the Southern African Development Community region.
IOM is currently conducting a mapping study along the transport corridors of Beira and Tete in Mozambique, looking at the behaviour of truckers and their interaction with surrounding communities, particularly in areas of high risk for HIV transmission. Preliminary findings of this study will be shared at the consultation, which will also serve to identify existing gaps and challenges of HIV response programmes, systems, structures and policies.
The consultation was part of the Partnership on HIV and Mobility in Southern Africa (PHAMSA) programme, a regional programme implemented by IOM’s Office for Southern Africa, which aims to reduce the HIV incidence and impact of AIDS among migrant and mobile workers and their families.
Since 2004, PHAMSA has focussed on populations and locations characterised by high levels of mobility, including the construction, transport, commercial agriculture, fisheries and mining sectors as well as border-crossing sites. PHAMSA is funded by the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency (Sida).
For more information contact: Nosipho Theyise at IOM Pretoria, Tel: +27 12 342 2789 or Email:
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