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U.S. AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
PRESS RELEASE
WASHINGTON, DC 20523
PRESS OFFICE
http://www.usaid.gov
(202) 712-43202001-097
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
December 11, 2001Contact: USAID Press Office
OUAGADOUGOU, Burkina Faso - The U.S. Agency for International Development and The Johns Hopkins University Center for Communication Programs today released the latest issue of Population Reports, Youth and HIV/AIDS: Can We Avoid Catastrophe. This paper looks at the overall global picture for youth in light of the latest United Nations figures showing nearly 12 million young adults are infected with HIV/AIDS. The situation is particularly grim in sub-Saharan Africa where 8.6 million infected young adults live.
With more than 70 percent of the young people infected with HIV/AIDS living in sub-Saharan Africa, a combination of strong political leadership and markedly increased funding is needed to avoid catastrophic results, concludes the new report.
"This new report demonstrates that political leadership can make the difference in stopping the spread of this deadly virus among African youth," said Ron MacInnis of USAID. Speaking at the XIIth International Conference on AIDS and STDs in Africa, MacInnis stated that because of national strategic approaches, some African nations like Uganda have seen declines in HIV prevalence.
"Uganda has succeeded where other nations have failed because of President Museveni's bold leadership in acknowledging the epidemic early on and encouraging widespread prevention efforts," MacInnis said.
The new report found that infection rates among young women in many parts of Africa are at least twice the rates among young men. In certain areas of Kenya and Zambia, teenage women have HIV prevalence rates of 25 percent compared with 4 percent among teenage men. In Botswana, with the continent's highest HIV rate among youth, at least one-third of young women are infected.
"The reason more young women are infected than young men include physiological factors and traditional cultural practices that add to their risk," said Hopkins researcher Karungari Kiragu, the lead author of the new Population Reports. "Because of their status, young women in many African nations feel powerless to refuse sex or even to ask for a condom to be used."
For example, in Kenya 40 percent of sexually active secondary school girls said they had been forced or tricked into having sex, and 40 percent of female adolescents in Cameroon said their first sexual experience was forced.
And because men believe younger women are less likely to be HIV positive, men are choosing younger sex partners. Some teenage girls also choose older men or "sugar daddies" as sex partners to get gifts or money for school. A myth also persists among some men that having sex with a virgin can cure AIDS.
Prevention efforts through education and communication programs should begin early, before young adults begin having sex, the report recommends. Those prevention efforts also need to reach vulnerable youth such as street children, sex workers and the millions of children that have been orphaned due to the AIDS epidemic. In Uganda and Zambia delaying the age of sexual debut was critical to reducing HIV prevalence and utilized peer education to encourage "saying no" to sex. In addition, condoms should be promoted for dual protection against unwanted pregnancy and the transmission of HIV.
USAID is committed to providing young people in developing countries with the information and services they need to protect themselves from HIV infection. Through its "expanded response" strategy, USAID supports the international goal of reducing HIV prevalence among 15- to 24-year-olds in high-prevalence countries by 50 percent by 2007.
In Zambia, a USAID-supported mass media campaign stresses abstinence for youth who are not yet sexually active and condom use for those who are. This campaign has contributed to behavior changes such as delayed onset of sexual activity and more consistent condom use among sexually active young adults. Zambia has reported a 42 percent reduction in HIV prevalence among youth aged 15 to 19.
In Senegal, a USAID-supported project is targeting primary, secondary, and technical/vocational school students with a program that provides HIV prevention education. The project also works with education personnel to establish a positive environment for HIV prevention in schools.
In addition, USAID recently awarded Family Health International $85 million to establish YouthNet, a five-year program to promote the reproductive health of youth in developing countries.
Johns Hopkins University/Center for Communication Programs is a pioneer in the field of strategic, research-based communication for behavior change and health promotion that has helped transform the theory and practice of public health communication. With representatives in more than 30 countries, JHU/CCP has been a leader in the development of projects based on systematic needs assessments and clear strategies for positioning and presenting the benefits of health interventions to appropriate audiences. To find out more about JHU/CCP, go to http://www.jhuccp.org/.
USAID has provided more than $1.7 billion toward fighting the AIDS pandemic since 1986. Currently, the agency has programs in over 50 countries, including 21 in sub-Saharan Africa. USAID's HIV/AIDS programs combine an interrelated strategy of prevention, care, treatment and support; assistance to orphans and vulnerable children; surveillance of the pandemic; and encouraging the support of donors and national leaders in the fight against HIV/AIDS. More information on USAID's HIV/AIDS program is available at http://www.usaid.gov/pop_health/aids/
USAID is a sponsor of the bi-annual International Conference on AIDS and STDs in Africa. USAID is the government agency providing humanitarian assistance and economic development worldwide for 40 years.
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