TOPIC
Socio-Cultural Factors Responsible For the High Incidence of HIV in Nigeria: A Study of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria.

AUTHOR

Eze Chidinma Esther

ABSTRACT
Nigeria accounts for 9% of people living with HIV globally, and has the second largest HIV disease burden in the world with 3.2 million, after South Africa which has 6.8 million burden of the disease. The country accounted for about 65% of pregnant women who tested positive for HIV as at 2016. Women who are HIV positive, who gave birth and contributed to the pool of mother to child transmission increased to about 26% in 2016, notwithstanding the enhanced  efforts devoted to the prevention of mother-to-child HIV transmission (PMTCT), the nationwide. Meanwhile, NACA states that unprotected heterosexual sex accounts for 80% of new HIV infections in Nigeria, with the majority of remaining HIV infections occurring in key affected populations such as sex workers. It added that Akwa Ibom State tops the prevalence rate chart with about 5.6% of its residents living with the virus, and it’s one of the six states in Nigeria that accounted for 41% of people living with HIV in Nigeria. Thus, HIV is still a major contributor to the burden of disease in Akwa Ibom State and is particularly devastating because it affects the population in their most productive years. The finding of the high HIV incidence calls for renewed and innovative efforts to prevent HIV infection among young adults especially. This paper recommended the need to urgently reach the younger generation with HIV prevention and treatment services, and put in place research that can better understand the factors that are driving HIV transmission among adolescents and young adults in Akwa Ibom State.
Keywords: HIV, transmission and adolescents

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PUBLISHED

2023-01-11

HOW TO CITE

Eze Chidinma Esther (2023).Socio-Cultural Factors Responsible For the High Incidence of HIV in Nigeria: A Study of Akwa Ibom State, Nigeria. IAA Journal Arts and Humanities 10(1):26-31.