Report on high-level meeting on HIV and drug use in Thailand

The High-level Meeting on HIV and Drug use in Thailand was co-organised by the Thailand Ministry of Public Health, International Drug Policy Consortium, PSI Thailand Foundation, and the International AIDS Society. It was held as a half-day meeting during the week of the International Congress on AIDS in Asia and the Pacific on 18-22 November 2013. The objectives of the meeting were to:

1. raise awareness amongst Thailand’s policymakers about international standards and best practice on the implementation of harm reduction services and enabling policies, and
2. cultivate a national debate on enabling policies and practises that would facilitate an increase the coverage of harm reduction services in Thailand.

It was closed to media and the public, with no record of comments and statements attributed to specific individuals, to facilitate frank discussion on issues relating to harm reduction services and policy barriers in Thailand, including:

• HIV risks relating to drug use
• State of coverage of harm reduction services
• Barriers to the increase in coverage of harm reduction services, and
• Recommendations for removing barriers.

This report summarises the presentations delivered, and key discussion points and outcomes at the meeting, which was divided into two sessions.

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