NEW HIV infections being recorded in Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) in Zimbabwe could be linked to harmful practices such as Gender Based Violence (GBV), Child Marriages and sexual abuse obtaining in the country, the Zimbabwe Association of Church related Hospitals (ZACH) has warned.
By Michael Gwarisa
UNAIDS data shows that Adolescent Girls and Young Women from sub-Saharan Africa, aged 15-24, remain at substantial risk of acquiring HIV and in 2021, they accounted for 63% of all new HIV infections in 2021 largely due to biological, socio-economic, religious, and cultural factors.
Speaking to HealthTimes on the side-lines of a Sensitization Workshop For Journalists On Vaw/Hiv/Agyw/ and the Sasa Programme in Marondera, Shamiso Yikoniko, the ZACH Technical Advisor, Communication and Social Mobilisation said Journalists have the power to reduce cases of abuse and HIV in AGYW through their reportage.
Sensitization of Journalists is an approved activity under the SASA model of the AGYW GF grant. The media play critical roles in ensuring that the communities are provided with correct, consistent and clear messages on HIV/VAW/AGYW. In addition, journalists play a significant role in challenging harmful cultural and religious practices that promote GBV or hinder promotion of gender balance.
“Interventions which address the social and structural factors that fuel intergenerational, forced and/ortransactional sex – particularly gender inequality and sexual and Gender-Based Violence (GBV) – are critical for preventing HIV among AGYW. This is where media comes in to play their part in amplifying voices of AGYW and exposing abuse as it happens in communities,” said Yikoniko.
According to statistics, less than half of young people in Zimbabwe are knowledgeable about HIV prevention methods (46% among women and 47% among men), improved Comprehensive Sexuality Education (CSE) is also critical. Zimbabwe’s modes of transmission study (ongoing) shows that the greatest number of new infections – more than 16,000 a year – occur among never married women. Adolescent Girls and Young Women (AGYW) in particular experience dramatically disproportionate burden and risk factors.
“For example, young women (20-24) have HIV prevalence 2.78 times greater than their male peers. 17.1% of women aged 15-19 who had sex in the last year did so with a partner that was ten or more years older (up from 15.2% in 2010 and 7.5% in 2005). Further, 41% of girls report sexual debut before 18 years as unwanted and rates of transactional sex are high, and increasing. The HIV prevalence among young women (18-24) with two or more transactional sex partners in the last six months is estimated at 32%, compared to 10% among those who have never had transactional sex.”
She added that progress towards 95-95-95 among adolescents and young people in Zimbabwe was distinctly lagging compared to the adult population cascade and this is largely driven by a significant gap in achieving the first 95; among young people aged 15-24, just 52% know their HIV status.
