Both countries have the special features of inter-ministry cooperation and HIV surveillance. Taiwan has several mandatory HIV testing practices among target groups such as inmates, and the Philippines has a sentinel surveillance programme. These serve as important bases for conducting needs assessments and for implementing non-formal education. The inter-ministry cooperation increases access to vulnerable groups and hardto-reach populations. The surveillance helps identify populations at risk. A notable strength of the Philippines in preventing HIV transmission is its system of registering sex workers, which enhances the non-formal education for this vulnerable group. A strength of Taiwan is its provision of free HAART to encourage voluntary testing. The mission of non-formal educational efforts should be disseminating knowledge and skills to prevent the disease's spread, and to increase service utilization.