Effects of Cash Transfer for the Prevention of HIV in Young South African Women

Effects of Cash Transfer for the Prevention of HIV in Young South African Women

Cash transfers to young women for staying in school and its effect on acquiring HIV

The overall purpose of this study is to determine whether providing cash transfers to young women and their household, conditional on school attendance, reduces young women's risk of acquiring Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV). The overall goal of the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) intervention is to reduce structural barriers to education with the goal of increasing school attendance of young women, thereby decreasing their HIV risk.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Female aged 13 to 20 years.
• Enrolled in grades 8, 9, 10 or 11 at the beginning of the study at schools in the AHDSS study site
• Intending to continue to live in the study site until the end of the follow-up period.
• Be willing and able to consent/assent to all study procedures including HIV and HSV-2 testing.
• Able to read sufficiently to use ACASI.
• Have a bank or post office account or have documentation to be able to open a bank or post office account (i.e., birth certificate, South African National Identification Book, or passport and proof of residence). Post Office accounts will only be required for participants in the Intervention arm.
• Parent/Legal Guardian who lives with young woman, willing and able to consent to all study procedures including HIV and HSV-2 testing.
• Parent/Legal Guardian has a bank or post office account or has documentation to be able to open a bank or post office account (i.e. South African National Identification Book, or passport and proof of residence). Note that the account may be opened in the name of any adult who resides in the household with the young woman.

Exclusion Criteria:

• Pregnant by self-report at baseline.
• Married at baseline.
• No parent or legal guardian living in household.
• Any other reason that the staff feels would jeopardize the health or well-being of the participant or staff or would prevent proper conduct of the study.