As the global health community prepared to convene at the STI & HIV 2025 World Congress in Montreal from 26 to 30 July, the World Health Organization has released two key components of its forthcoming consolidated guidelines on sexually transmitted infections (STIs). The new Guidelines for the Management of Asymptomatic STIs and the Recommendations on the Delivery of Health Services for STI Prevention and Care aim to fill lingering gaps in prevention, screening, diagnosis, and treatment, particularly in high-burden, resource-limited settings.
These evidence-based documents are designed to complement existing WHO guidance on syndromic management and on targeted interventions for specific infections such as gonorrhoea, chlamydia, syphilis, trichomoniasis, genital candidiasis, Mycoplasma genitalium, human papillomavirus, and bacterial vaginosis. Central to the updated guidance is the recommendation for targeted screening of gonorrhoea and chlamydia in populations at elevated risk.
WHO advises that screening efforts focus on pregnant women, adolescents and young people aged 10–24, sex workers, and men who have sex with men, with intervals of at least annually, or every six months for sex workers and MSM, depending on local prevalence and resource availability. By aligning screening frequency with individual risk profiles and national capacity, WHO seeks to optimize resources used while ensuring timely detection of asymptomatic infections that contribute to ongoing transmission chains.
In addition to refining clinical algorithms, the new WHO recommendations advocate for decentralizing and integrating STI services into broader health platforms. Task sharing with trained providers and community health workers, alongside the prudent use of digital tools to augment in-person care, are highlighted as critical strategies to extend reach into underserved communities. By shifting from vertical, clinic-based models toward more flexible and community-integrated service delivery, WHO envisions a framework that can simultaneously address STI prevention, reproductive health, and broader primary-care goals.
Dr Meg Doherty, Director of WHO’s Global HIV, Hepatitis and STIs Programmes, emphasized the urgency of these updates.
“ These new recommendations aim to close persistent policy and service gaps, especially for asymptomatic STIs, and help countries move faster toward the 2030 goals ”
Her statement underscores WHO’s commitment to accelerating progress against the Sustainable Development Goal target of ending the STI epidemic as a public health threat by 2030.
Alongside this guidance release, WHO published data on national policy adoption and implementation, revealing mixed progress among Member States. While 89 percent of countries reporting to Global AIDS Monitoring in 2024–2025 have a national STI strategy or action plan, less than half of these (43 percent) have updated their strategies since 2023. Similarly, 97 percent of countries possess national case-management guidelines, yet only 50 percent have revised them since 2020. Such lagging policy renewals risk leaving national responses misaligned with evolving epidemiological trends and resistance patterns.
Surveillance of antimicrobial resistance remains a critical blind spot: only 37 percent of countries conduct routine gonococcal resistance monitoring, despite growing concerns about untreatable strains. On a more encouraging note, 95 countries have integrated dual HIV/syphilis rapid tests into their national policies, with nearly half adopting them for both pregnant women and key populations. Furthermore, 72 percent of reporting countries have national plans to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV and syphilis, marking a significant step in safeguarding newborn health. However, the uneven pace of policy updates and implementation highlights the need for renewed momentum and investment in surveillance systems, laboratory capacity, and workforce training.
Vaccine policy progress also featured prominently in WHO’s review. As of 1 July 2025, 147 Member States—representing 76 percent of countries worldwide—have introduced human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine into their national immunization schedules, a critical intervention for preventing cervical cancer. Two additional countries have reported only partial vaccine introduction, signaling potential bottlenecks in financing, cold-chain logistics, or community acceptance. WHO’s data therefore call on governments and development partners to intensify efforts to achieve full, equitable HPV coverage in line with global elimination targets.
By coupling robust, evidence-based guidance with transparent reporting on national policy uptake, WHO aims to galvanize high-level commitment at the STI & HIV 2025 World Congress and beyond. The combined emphasis on closing service delivery gaps, strengthening surveillance, and accelerating guideline revisions offers a comprehensive roadmap for governments, clinicians, and civil-society actors to amplify the global STI response. As Dr Doherty noted, these concerted efforts are essential to chart a course toward ending the STI epidemic and safeguarding reproductive health for all by 2030.
