Technical mission: HIV, STI and viral hepatitis in Bulgaria. 19-21 September 2016 and 14-15 November 2016

In 2016, the Ministry of Health in Bulgaria invited ECDC to prepare an assessment of the current national HIV programme and to review the STI and hepatitis surveillance system. The assessment was made during two separate country missions, the first focusing on HIV epidemiology and response and the second on STI and hepatitis surveillance.

This mission report looks at Bulgaria’s HIV epidemiology and response, with particular emphasis on ensuring the continuation of prevention activities related to HIV and STI after the discontinuation of Global Fund resources at the end of 2016. It also sets out the findings of the second technical mission which was to provide support for the surveillance of STIs, hepatitis B and hepatitis C, to define key issues affecting reporting and interpretation of the surveillance data and to identify any areas where ECDC might provide support for Bulgaria to improve the quality of the data. ​​​​