June 01, 2021 | Andrew Tie
The Fifth Botswana HIV/AIDS Impact Survey (BAIS V) has now been in the field for nearly two months and has completed the first wave of implementation. Approximately 3,800 households have been surveyed across the project’s three regions (see map below). This represents approximately one-third of the 13,564 households that will be surveyed nationwide before the project concludes this summer.
The survey teams are comprised of community mobilizers, who help build survey awareness and participation; counselor interviewers; monitoring and sampling staff; and laboratory personnel. Samples are being analyzed by way of a network of satellite laboratories located throughout Botswana that have been identified by the project.
BAIS V is being led by the Government of Botswana with technical support from Ciheb, the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and other partners. BAIS V is funded by the CDC under the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR).
The Next Wave
The survey is now set to begin the next “wave” of implementation across the three implementation regions, which will have teams visiting households in more remote areas of Botswana.
“We are excited to move on to the next wave,” said Dr. Reson Marima, BAIS V project director. “The survey results will provide an in-depth look at the HIV epidemic through a nationally representative sample. We are committed to delivering the highest quality data to help inform prevention and treatment initiatives.”
Kitso Ketshabile, who works as an assistant district AIDS coordinator for Kweneng West Sub-district in southeastern Botswana, has joined BAIS V as a survey monitor and trainer of trainers. “BAIS V is ours,” she said. “BAIS V speaks for us as a country, it speaks for us as the communities.” Hear more from Kitso in the below video.
Contact
Center for International Health, Education, and Biosecurity
Institute of Human Virology
Anthony Okoth
Regional Communications Specialist
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