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Multiple Sexual Partnerships

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Percentage of women and men aged 15-49 who have had sexual intercourse with more than one partner in the last 12 months

ID: 
661
Alias: 
PEPFAR: Percent of women and men aged 15–49 who had sex with more than one partner in the last 12 months Global Fund: Multiple partners: Women and men aged 15-49 who had sex with more than one partner in the last 12 months
What it measures: 

It measures progress in reducing the percentage of people who have higher-risk sex.

The spread of HIV largely depends upon unprotected sex among people with a high number of partnerships. Individuals who have multiple partners have a higher risk of HIV transmission than individuals who do not link into a wider sexual network.

Numerator: 

Number of respondents aged 15–49 who have had sexual intercourse with more than one partner in the last 12 months
 

Denominator: 

Number of all respondents aged 15–49
 

Data Type: 
Percent
Composite Indicator: 
No
Calculation: 
Numerator / Denominator
Method of measurement: 
Respondents’ sexual histories are obtained. Analysis of sexual history is used to determine whether the respondent has had more than one partner in the preceding 12 month period. For further information on DHS/AIS methodology and survey instruments, visit www.measuredhs.com
Data Collection
Data Collection Method: 
Population-based survey
Data Collection Tools: 
AIDS Indicator Survey (AIS)
Demographic and Health Survey (DHS)
Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (MICS)
Measurement Frequency: 
Every 3-5 years
Epidemic Type: 
Concentrated/low level
Generalized
Indicator Type: 
Behavioral Outcome
Indicator Level: 
National
Disaggregations
Age-group: 
15 years - 19 years
20 years - 24 years
25 years - 49 years
Gender: 
Female
Male
Strengths and weaknesses: 

This indicator gives a picture of levels of higher-risk sex. If people have only one sexual partner, the
change will be captured by changes in this indicator. However, if people simply decrease the number of
sexual partners they have, the indicator will not reflect a change, even though potentially this may have a
significant impact on the epidemic spread of HIV and may be counted a programme success. Additional
indicators may need to be selected to capture the reduction in multiple sexual partners in general.

Preferred Indicator: 
Core National Indicator - UNGASS
Global AIDS Progress Reporting 2012
Agency: 
Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM)
Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS)
The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)
Relevance: 
2009 UN General Assembly Special Session on HIV/AIDS (UNGASS)
Global AIDS Progress Reporting 2012
Global AIDS Response Progress Reporting (GARPR) 2013
Universal Access (UA)
US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR)
Status: 
Active
Document link: 
(1.19 MB)
UNAIDS. United Nations General Assembly Special Session: Guidelines on Construction of Core Indicators. 2007. (532.17 KB)
Indicator 16, page 57
Office of US Global AIDS Coordinator. The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief: Next Generation Indicators Reference Guide. July 2009 (2.62 MB)
P8.11.N
UNAIDS. Monitoring the Declaration of Commitment on HIV/AIDS: Guidelines on Construction of Core Indicators, 2010 Reporting. 2009. (609.18 KB)
Indicator 16, page 57
GFATM. Monitoring and evaluation toolkit: HIV, tuberculosis and malaria and health systems strengthening, 2009 (2.38 MB)
HIV-O3, page 140
UNAIDS. Global AIDS Response Progress Reporting 2013: Construction of Core Indicators for monitoring the 2011 UN Political Declaration on HIV/AIDS. 2013. (1.85 MB)
Indicator 1.3, page 27
Keywords
Programme Focus General: 
Prevention
Programme Focus Specific: 
Sexual Behaviour
Target Population: 
Age: Adults
Age: Young People
Sex: All
Goal - Initiative or Country: 
Initiative
Related Indicators: 
Higher-risk sex