Nearly 10 million young people in Africa could be infected with HIV in 33 years – New data
A new data from multiple countries in sub-Saharan Africa says some 10 million young people in the region could be infected with HIV by 2050, if the current trend continues.
The data was presented by researchers and public health experts at the ongoing 22nd International AIDS Conference in Amsterdam, The Netherlands today July 25, 2018.
A UNICEF study highlighted the ongoing toll of HIV among young people in the region, but data from several African countries demonstrated how enhanced HIV prevention and treatment programmes can dramatically reduce the impact of the epidemic.
The analysis conducted by UNICEF estimated that 9.6 million young people aged 15-24 years will be newly infected with HIV in sub-Saharan Africa between 2017 and 2050.
The analysis further indicates that about two-thirds of those to be infected will be girls or young women.
It notes that the continued toll of HIV among young people reflects the rapidly growing youth population in the region, which is expected to increase by 85 per cent by 2050, as well as the slow decline in HIV incidence in this group, which has fallen by some 3 per cent a year since 2010.
Aleya Khalifa of the UNICEF who presented the data, noted that reducing the HIV burden among young people in sub-Saharan Africa will require better access to HIV prevention, sexual and reproductive health, and targeted testing services.
Commenting, Linda-Gail Bekker, the President of the International AIDS Society and International Chair of AIDS 2018 said, “Despite extraordinary progress, HIV remains a serious threat to the lives of millions of people in sub-Saharan Africa., adding, the data presented today underscore both the urgent need and the opportunity to invest in expanded HIV prevention and treatment programmes that can turn back the epidemic in Africa.”
By Emmanuel K. Dogbevi, in Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Copyright ©2018 by Creative Imaginations Publicity
All rights reserved. This report or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the publisher except for the use of brief quotations in reviews.