A series of seven Guidance Briefs has been developed by the Inter-Agency Task Team (IATT) on HIV and Young People to assist United Nations Country Teams (UNCT) and UN Theme Groups on HIV/AIDS in providing guidance to their staffs, governments, donors and civil society on the specifi c actions that need to be in place to respond effectively to HIV among young people. This Brief provides a global overview and is complemented by a separate Brief for most-at-risk young people and five others on HIV interventions among young people provided through different settings /sectors: community, education, health, humanitarian emergencies and the workplace. The purpose of these Briefs is to help decision makers understand what needs to be implemented, based on the latest global evidence on effective interventions for young people.