iCount competition: data tracking for HIV information and services for young people
07 December 2015
07 December 201507 December 2015
Young people continue to be disproportionately affected by HIV. While major advances have been made, access to health services, including HIV testing and life-saving treatment for young people, is still lacking in many countries.
UNAIDS, in collaboration with the PACT—a global coalition of youth organizations—launched a competition on 7 December to develop technologically solutions that will collect data to track progress made in expanding access to HIV and sexual and reproductive health information and services by young people.
The data collected by iCount will provide evidence to effectively advocate for improved policies and programmes advancing young people’s sexual and reproductive health and rights in at least 12 countries.
The competition will run through to 14 February 2016. The winning entry will earn US$ 15 000 for the best technological solution to develop a platform for data-driven accountability, with three honourable mentions winning US$ 2000 each. A formal bidding process will follow to decide whether the winning participant will develop the platform to collect this data. If agreed, the winning entry’s bid would pilot and roll-out the platform in at least 12 countries in 2016, as part of ACT!2015, a global youth initiative supported by the PACT and UNAIDS.
Using iCount, young people will be able to generate their own, easy-to-understand data to inspire action and mobilize young people to advocate for their human rights and ultimately hold governments and service providers to account.
"iCount will certainly ensure that young people are not left behind in the search for digital solutions to ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030. As a young person, I feel this is a great opportunity for us to take charge of the future by making information about us available to policy-makers and game-changers through applications and platforms designed to serve our needs.”
Clarissa Regede, Youth Engage, Zimbabwe
"I am happy to be supporting an innovative initiative that will allow me and many adolescents and youth across the world to raise our voices and work collectively to improve our health. In the journey to end the AIDS epidemic by 2030 and to achieve health for all, iCount will give young people the power to identify the real gaps and provide opportunities for collective action and social change."
Daniel Tobon Garcia, Youth Coalition for Sexual and Reproductive Rights and the PACT
"In the era of the Sustainable Development Goals, young people will be able to use this platform to drive accountability to ensure targets on universal access to sexual and reproductive health services and on ending the AIDS epidemic by 2030 are met."
