Unmarried and previously married women drive HIV infection stagnation

Kampala, Uganda | THE BLACK EXAMINER | Unmarried Women, Formerly Married Individuals, and Uncircumcised Men who were previously married emerge as the primary contributors to the persistent HIV infections, as per the latest Annual Joint AIDS Review report from the Uganda AIDS Commission. Released today in Kampala, the report reveals that never-married females account for 35% of new HIV transmissions, followed by previously married uncircumcised men at 20%, previously married women at 12%, and Female Sex Workers (FSW) at 11%.

Despite a decline in new infections and AIDS-related deaths since 2010, the report notes a stagnation over the past two years, with approximately 52,000 cases annually. Dr. Daniel Byamuka, Head of HIV Prevention at the UAC, suggests that the country could have recorded fewer than 20,000 new infections by now if there had been changes in social behaviors, such as avoiding multiple sexual partnerships, extramarital relationships, and abstaining from sexual activities among young men and women.

HIV activist Shakira Namwanje attributes the rising number of new infections among young females to the government’s delays in implementing the long-acting injectable Cabotegravir as pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) for HIV in the country.