HIV In Southern Africa
HIV/AIDS is one of the most serious health concerns in South Africa. The country has the highest number of people afflicted with HIV of any country, and the fourth-highest adult HIV prevalence rate, according to the 2019 United Nations statistics.
According to a UNAIDS dataset sourced from the World Bank, in 2019 the HIV prevalence rate for adults aged 15 to 49 was 27% in Eswatini(Swaziland), 25% in Lesotho, 25% in Botswana and 19% in South Africa.
Understanding HIV Prevalence
HIV prevalence does not indicate that a country has an AIDS crisis, as HIV and AIDS are separate conditions. HIV prevalence, instead, indicates that people remain alive, despite the infection. South Africa has the largest HIV treatment programme in the world.With the correct medication, HIV is a manageable chronic condition, like diabetes or hypertension.
A population with a larger proportion of diabetics, means more people are receiving treatment for the condition. Hence, a population with a larger proportion of HIV-positive people, means more people are receiving anti-retroviral treatment.South Africa’s HIV treatment programme was launched in earnest in 2005.The trend in South Africa’s HIV and AIDS statistics has changed significantly in the years since then.
HIV In South Africa By Gender
HIV/AIDS is more prevalent among females, especially those under the age of 40. Women made up roughly 4 in every 5 people with HIV/AIDS aged 20–24, and 2 out of 3 of those aged 25–29. Although prevalence is higher among women in general, only 1 in every 6 HIV/AIDS infected people with multiple sex partners are women.
According to a study published in late 2019, men who have sex with men (MSM) are at higher risk of HIV infection than men in the general population. Prevalence rates of HIV infection among MSM varied from 6 to 37% depending on the country, far exceeding the national prevalence rates. The prevalence ratios are particularly elevated in West and Central Africa as well as in low-prevalence countries.
Young boys and girls in South Africa are both highly affected by intimate partner violence and HIV/AIDS. Research has found links between the two, as well as a relationship with drug use.It was found that problem drinking and marijuana use are mediating variables in the relationship between men who experienced childhood sexual abuse and who engage in HIV sexual risk behaviors.
One 2006 study also noted that alcohol and increased HIV risk are linked to gender-based violence in two specific ways – one being that the consumption of alcohol might lead to increased sexual violence against women refusing sex, and that women may be abused for disclosing their positive status to their partner.
In adult and adolescent women, low relationship power and victimization by intimate partner violence were found to be linked to HIV risk. This lower relationship power affects interpersonal dynamics that increase sexual risk due to condom nonuse and the likelihood of a girl with low relationship power having more sexual partners. However, both boys and girls with lower relationship power were found to be more likely to have multiple partners.
Regardless of gender, youths with lower power are more vulnerable to be pressured or coerced into transactional sex.Furthermore, women and men both experience difficulty disclosing their HIV positive status for various reasons, the most common of which being that women fear abandonment or retaliative violence, while men fear embarrassment and shame.
Awareness Campaigns In South Africa
The four main HIV/AIDS awareness campaigns in South Africa are Khomanani (funded by the government), LoveLife(primarily privately funded), Soul City (a television drama for adults) and Soul Buddyz (a television series for teenagers).Soul City and Soul Buddyz are the most successful campaigns although both campaigns experienced a slight loss of effectiveness between 2005 and 2008. Khomanani is the least successful campaign, although its effectiveness has increased by more than 50% between 2005 and 2008.
The dubious quality of condoms which are distributed is a setback to these efforts. In 2007, the government recalled more than 20 million locally manufactured condoms which were defective. Some of the contraceptive devices given away at the ANC’s centenary celebrations in 2012 failed a water test conducted by the Treatment Action Campaign.
How Many People Have HIV In South Africa?
Women continue to bear a disproportionate burden of the HIV epidemic, with a prevalence of 21.5% compared to 13.1% in men. Around one-third of women are likely to experience intimate partner violence in South Africa. This is a huge issue, which can prevent women from testing for HIV, starting and staying on treatment. It also helps drive transmission.
Men in South Africa are less likely than women to use HIV services, including HIV testing and starting and staying on antiretroviral therapy.
It is estimated that 57.7% of sex workers have HIV. Female sex workers with HIV are consistently less likely to know their HIV status than adult women overall.
Gay men and other men who have sex with men with HIV are much less likely to know their HIV status compared with the overall adult male population with HIV. However, when they do know their HIV status, they are more likely to receive HIV treatment and be virally suppressed.
HIV-related stigma remains an issue – around 17% of people hold discriminatory attitudes towards people with HIV, according to UNAIDS data. But this is lower compared to other countries in the region.
In all about 78 million people in South Africa have contracted HIV.The numbers have gone up since February 2022 just after the pandemic.
