HIV/AIDS high in rural areas: Report
By ALISON ANIS
IT has been estimated that more than 200,0000 Papua New Guineans will be living with HIV/AIDS by 2012, with HIV prevalence rate reaching 5.2%.
This is according to table one of Estimated HIV prevalence from 1993 to 2012 as shown by the 2008 United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) Country progress report on HIV/AIDS.
The United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) report on HIV/AIDS was submitted on Jan 31, this year to UN headquarters in Geneva.
It is the first report on UNGASS indicators that PNG has submitted for the period of January 2006 to December 2007.
The table showed prevalence figures from 1993 with projections to 2012 at the national, urban and rural levels.
It revealed that an estimated 208,717 people would be living with the virus nationally in four years time (2012) with 5.07% prevalence rate.
Of this, a total of 9,244 would be those living in the urban areas with 1.44% prevalence rate while majority of those infected (about 199,471) would be at the rural areas with a high prevalence rate of 5.74%.
These were the figures according to 2007 estimation exercise using the Estimation and Projection Package (EPP) and the Spectrum Software with the available data from both urban and rural areas.
A calibration rate of 80% was used to balance the known over-estimation caused by the use of ANC (antenatal clinic) data when estimating HIV prevalence among the general population.
In December last year , the national prevalence rate was estimated to be 1.61%, with an estimated 59,537 people living with HIV. The urban prevalence was estimated at 1.38% with 7,943 people living with HIV. The rural prevalence rate was estimated at 1.65%, with 51,594 people living with HIV.
Last year there was an estimated 14,638 new HIV infections.
According to the reports the trend of the epidemic in rural areas shows a late but strong increase.
“It was estimated that the HIV epidemic in PNG became more rural as of last year, affecting tremendously the national prevalence, given that 85% of the population is rural.
“The estimated and projected trends of he national epidemic is very close to the trend of the rural


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G.Afu, what is your objective of cutting and posting without any comments?

Some one made an hypricritical statement about HIV in Africa. As if Africa is a damn country and they seem to forget the soaring HIV cases in PNG. That is treating to erase 60 % of there population by the year 2040!

Nothing personal I just pity the ladies that been raped, cheated on and pressured to have sex with HIV infected white expariaties and PNG men.

whatever...

it happens everywhere...

compare the total population of Africa to PNG before using percentages... than you'll probably see some sense.

G.Afu, ok fair enough. I just hope PNG learns from Africa, otherwise the country will become a disaster like many African states in terms of HIV/AIDS, violence, and political corruption.

cheers

I agree with your statement. And I hope it doesn't spread rampantly too the other South Pacific island nations.