The United States has funded abstinence and faithfulness programs to curb the HIV/AIDS rate in Africa. However, a new study found that those programs are ineffective among sub-Saharan Africans.
The U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, has an ABC approach: abstinence, be faithful and correct and consistent condom use, Fox News reported. Between 2004 and 2013, PEPFAR funded more than $1.4 billion for programs to carry out these practices.
Despite the efforts, the PEPFAR investment didn't affect the numbers pertaining to teenage pregnancy, the age when Africans had their first sexual intercourse and their sexual partners in the past year. Specifically, there were no differences recorded between nations that were funded or weren't funded by PEPFAR, according to the study published this week in Health Affairs.
HIV/AIDS Problem Is Rooted
PEPFAR has been successful in some ways. The program reportedly provided HIV/AIDS drugs that helped save over 5 million people worldwide and prevented almost 1 million babies from acquiring HIV/AIDS from their mothers, NPR wrote. Aside from sex education classes in schools, PEPFAR also put public health announcements on billboards and the radio.
Dr. Eran Bendavid, an internal medicine doctor at Stanford Health Care, said PEPFAR's programs aren't enough to alter young Africans' views about sex. He said the people's sexual behavior and preferences are "much more deeply rooted," NPR further reported.
Focus Should Be In West And Central Africa
The Médecins Sans Frontières, or Doctors Without Borders, said the HIV/AIDS response should also focus in West and Central Africa. The MSF said PEPFAR, the Global Fund and UN and European agencies should develop faster strategies if they want to eradicate HIV/AIDS in Africa by 2020.
According to MSF, efforts are only made in sub-Saharan Africa while the West and Central Africa are being put to the sidelines. Granted, the numbers of HIV/AIDS carriers in West and Central Africa are low compared to the whopping rate in sub-Saharan Africa, but this doesn't mean that the people should be neglected. HIV/AIDS will thrive and escalate in numbers in the West and Central regions if the neglect continues.
African Women Are More Affected
HIV/AIDS infection rates among young African women are higher compared to young men, the Washington Post reported. This is because of the country's gender-based violence, extreme poverty and the prevalence of child marriage. With a male-dominated society, young women often lack the power to seek safer sex or access to health care services.
To curb the HIV/AIDS infection rates among young African women, norms should be altered and empowerment should be practiced. Keeping girls in school also helps lessen the HIV/AIDS infection rates.
