A recent UN report said India, China and Pakistan are among the 10 countries in the Asia-Pacific region that account for 98% youngsters aged 10 to 19 living with HIV.
The World AIDS Day on December 2 may see an official safe-sex emoji.
Condom maker Durex is presenting a formal submission on Wednesday, to get emoticon maker Unicode to adopt one. Durex has already launched a social media campaign last month, asking users to use #condomemoji. Durex said it was sending the submission to Unicode following a "resounding global support" for the campaign.
The World AIDS Day is meant to unite people around the world in the fight against HIV/AIDS. A recent UN report said India, China and Pakistan are among the 10 countries in the Asia-Pacific region that account for 98% youngsters aged 10 to 19 living with HIV.
The report said the region is facing a "hidden epidemic" of HIV among adolescents. In 2014, 220,000 adolescents were estimated to be living with HIV in the region.
Durex said a safe sex emoticon can play a vital role in an age of smartphones and tablets, when emoticons -- the small icons that are used to express emotions or physical things - have become a "crucial" tool of communication.
Citing its own research, the company said around 80 per cent of 16-25 year-old find it easier to express themselves with emojis. Around 84 per cent felt more comfortable using icons when talking about sex, Durex added.
A video for the campaign showed various way emojis are used to discuss sex, but noted the lack of one encouraging safe-sex. It proposed an angled, inflated condom.