The AIDS Indicator Survey (AIS) was developed to provide countries with a standardized tool to obtain indicators for effective monitoring of national HIV/AIDS programs.

The design for the AIS was guided by the need to have a survey protocol that will provide, in a timely fashion and at a reasonable cost, the information required for meeting HIV/AIDS program reporting requirements, including the collection of the President’s Emergency Plan, UNGASS, and other indicators while ensuring comparability of findings across countries and over time.

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Click here to view AIS Questionnaires and Manuals

Survey Tools

The AIS consists of two survey instruments – the household questionnaire and the individual questionnaire.

The household questionnaire includes a “household schedule,” which is used to identify eligible men and women (based on age – typically ages 15-49) for individual interviews and to obtain information on basic characteristics of the household and its members. Specifically, information is obtained on parental survivorship and residence, which provides the basis for the calculation of orphan-hood levels. In addition, indicators on care and support and on orphans and vulnerable children are included as part of the household questionnaire.

The individual questionnaire, which is used to interview both women or men, obtains data on: background characteristics, pattern of marital unions, age at sexual debut, patterns of sexual behavior in the last 12 months, condom use, experience with sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and treatment response to self-reported STIs, knowledge and attitudes related to HIV/AIDS, and coverage of HIV-testing.

Sample Design

The sample design is a conventional two-stage cluster sample survey which is representative at the national level and for both urban and rural areas. To ensure quality results, a minimum of 60 sample points are selected in both the urban and rural domains, for a total of 120 clusters. The second stage includes a selection of an average of 25 households per clusters, for a total of approximately 3,000 households. In all households, all women and men age 15-49 will be eligible to participate.

The results will be presented by sex, age (youth, other ages) and by urban/rural residence. There will be no information on regional variation.

Timetable

The survey will take approximately nine months to complete, including two months of fieldwork, and two months of data entry and editing.