Globally, HIV/AIDS has created an enormous challenge to the survival of mankind. It has nowrnbecome the leading cause of death in many developing countries especially in the Sub-SaharanrnAfrican countries. Industrialized countries have achieved significant result in the prevention andrncontrol of the disease mainly through the behavioral change interventions.rnEthiopia is one of the seriously affected countries by the epidemic. The disease is affecting thernmajority of the population, particularly the productive age group between 15-49 years, resultingrnin social and economic crisis. Though continuous Information, Education and Communicationrn(IEC) interventions have made efforts in increasing awareness about modes of transmission andrnprevention of HIV/AIDS, they have not successfully been able to bring about the desiredrnbehavioral change among the population.rnThus, the main objective of this study was to assess perceived barriers to behavioral changerntowards the prevention of HIV/AIDS among the urban community of Bahir Dar, where thernhighest prevalence of HIV infection was already documented. The study design was crosssectional,rnincluding both quantitative and qualitative methods. Using multi-stage samplingrntechnique, 910 urban residents aged 15-49 years were selected and interviewed.rnThe study has found out that though the majority of the population had awareness and favorablernattitudes towards the prevention of HIV/AIDS, some of them did not show behavioral changerntowards its prevention. The perceived barriers to the behavioral change were low IECrninterventions (31.3%), unemployment (29.5%), increase in illegal video showing and khatrnhouses (28.7%), low involvement of the community in the prevention activities (22.5%), genderrninequalities (12.2%), traditional malpractices (10.8%), stigma and discriminations attached tornHIV/AIDS (10.1%), inadequate recreational facilities for the youth (8.1%) and low involvementrnof the religious organizations in the prevention efforts (7.0%).rnSome of the socio- demographic characteristics, namely, sex, age, marital status, occupation andrnexposure to mass media were found to influence change of behavior towards the prevention ofrnHIV/AIDS. The majority of the respondents were aware of HIV/AIDS and could answer at leastrnviiirnone means of transmission and preventions HIV/AIDS, but only 19.6% and 29.1% of thernrespondents could answer the three major means of transmission and prevention of the disease,rnrespectively, indicating that there is still low level of comprehensive knowledge related tornHIV/AIDS among the population.rnIn general, the study indicated that the behavioral change towards the prevention of HIV/AIDSrncan be affected by some of the socio-demographic variables of the population. Moreover, thernperceived barriers towards the prevention of HIV/AIDS among the population were low level ofrncomprehensive knowledge about HIV/AIDS and factors related to communication, cultures,rnsocio-economic status and gender relations.rnThus, besides the poverty alleviation programs, community and multisectoral HIV/AIDS relatedinterventionsrnthrough appropriate and effective IEC strategy are vital in removing the barriersrnand bringing about sustainable behavioral change towards the prevention of HIV/AIDS amongrnthe population.