HIV and AIDS in Georgia: A Socio-Cultural Approach The views and opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors, and do not necessarily represent the views and official positions of UNESCO or of the Flemish government. The designations employed and the presentation of material throughout this review do not imply the expression of any opinion whatsoever on the part of UNESCO or the Flemish government concerning the legal status of any country, territory, city or area or its authorities, or concerning its frontiers or boundaries. This project has been supported by the Flemish government. Published by: Culture and Development Section Division of Cultural Policies and Intercultural Dialogue UNESCO 1, rue Miollis, 75015 Paris, FRANCE e-mail :
[email protected] web site : www.unesco.org/culture/aids Project Coordination: Helena Drobná and Christoforos Mallouris Cover design and Typesetting: Gega Paksashvili Project Coordination UNESCO: CLT/CPD/CAD - Helena Drobna, Christoforos Mallouris Project Coordination Georgia: Foundation of Georgian Arts and Culture – Maka Dvalishvili Printed by “O.S.Design” UNESCO Number: CLT/CPD/CAD-05/4D © UNESCO 2005 CONTENTS Pages Forewords 4 Preface 6 Acknowledgements 8 List of acronyms 9 Map of Georgia 10 Part I. HIV and AIDS overview in Georgia Introduction 11 I.1 HIV epidemiology in Georgia 12 I.2 Surveillance 12 I.3 Some characteristics of the Georgian culture 15 I.4 Drug use in Georgia 16 I.4.1 Drug use and related risky behaviour 16 I.4.2 Risk factors for HIV among IDU population 17