JANUARY 2006 – Vietnam's Ministry of Health has launched a nationwide media campaign to encourage men to avoid commercial sex.

Developed by StormEye Creative Communications with support from Family Health International, the campaign uses multiple communications strategies to promote sexual responsibility and educate high-risk men about preventing HIV and other sexually transmitted infections.

Until now, HIV prevention programs in Vietnam have largely overlooked male clients of sex workers, which has reinforced the idea that women are primarily responsible for preventing HIV transmission to their clients. This campaign avoids blaming female sex workers for HIV by instead promoting responsible role models for men.

Campaign ads with prevention messages tested among men who frequent sex workers – "Stop HIV: Live Like a Real Man" – are broadcast on national TV and radio and appear in numerous print publications. Essay contests promoted in the media solicit the direct participation of men. All campaign activities promote a telephone hotline staffed by professional counselors so that men may call in with questions about AIDS and sexual and reproductive health.

The President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, through the U.S. Agency for International Development, is funding the project. The campaign is integrated with USAID-supported interventions conducted by the Youth Union that provide outreach to at-risk men in bars, karaoke cafes and other places where they often go prior to engaging in commercial sex. 

The advertising campaign portrays men in real-life situations and in venues where commercial sex is available. However, the men in the ads break with tradition and ultimately decide against commercial sex, promoting a new social norm to "live like real men" by preventing HIV. At the end of the ads, the men raise their arms and grasp each other's hands to form an AIDS ribbon, a powerful image that serves as the logo of the campaign.

"These ads should help to create a new social norm against commercial sex in Vietnam," said Stephen Mills, country director for FHI in Vietnam. "The fact that the campaign messages and logos are reinforced in other interventions with men will make the impact even stronger."

This comprehensive set of interventions is based on research into the factors that affect men's decision to purchase sex. Results from a study recently published by FHI/Vietnam show an association between alcohol consumption, peer pressure and the perceived social acceptance of commercial sex in deciding whether to patronize a sex worker.

Data from two of Vietnam's neighbors, Cambodia and Thailand, show that both countries have experienced a decline in HIV transmission attributable to two major behavioral changes: an increase in condom use in commercial sex acts and an overall reduction in commercial sex. Vietnam's campaign is also designed to complement existing condom promotion campaigns in Vietnam.

                                                              — Margaret Dadian