Women and Girls in Complex Emergencies Complex emergencies are
situations of disrupted livelihoods and threats to life produced
by warfare, civil disturbance and large-scale movements of
people, in which any emergency response has to be conducted in a
difficult political and security environment (WHO, 2002).
Complex emergencies can also be generated from natural
disasters. An estimated 200 million people are affected every
year by humanitarian crises, in addition to the estimated 50
million uniformed services personnel (Kenny et al., 2010).
Special consideration must be given to HIV prevention strategies
in conflict situations. In northern Uganda, for example,
"physical and structural violence (political repression,
economic inequality, and gender-based discrimination) increase
vulnerability to HIV infection. In settings of war, traditional
HIV prevention that solely promotes risk avoidance and risk
reduction and assumes the existence of personal choice
inadequately addresses the realities of HIV transmission