Major infectious diseases in Mozambique are at high risk to the people. One HIV/AIDS is one of them.
HIV/AIDS: Facts
- 11.5% prevalence in adults.
- 1.4 million people living with HIV/AIDS, more than 90,000 of them are children under 15 years of age.
- Has caused 74,000 deaths (2009 est.)
- The first case of HIV/AIDS was diagnosed in 1986 (in Mozambique).
- Following this was a steady increase in prevalence (up to an est. 16.2%) for people from age 15 to 49 (2004 est.)
- In July 2004, the Mozambican government declared that HIV/AIDS was a national emergency.
- Most infections are found in woman. This is because woman are disadvantaged in social and physical power, and they do not often have a say. That leads to unprotected sex. Statistics prove that their HIV/AIDs prevalence rate is three times higher then males.
- Among adults, it is estimated that this disease is now 25% of the causes for death in Mozambique.
- In 2004, another problem was occurring due to AIDS. That year, it was estimated that around 325,000 children had lost one or both of their parents to the disease. The orphan crisis in this country is a major problem, and is adding to the nation’s poverty. It was estimated that those numbers would reach 626,000 by 2010.
- Today, there is need for greater prioritization of this disease by the government. It is important to sustain the essential human resources used to help.
- Another reason for the prevalence rate being so high is due to the near 2 million refugees still returning to Mozambique after the peace agreement in 1992. They are returning from neighborring countries where this disease also has high rates.
- HIV/AIDs was was also a serious threat to the prison pollpulation in this country. Back then prevalence in different prisons was estimated between twice and 50 times the rate in the general population of Mozambique.
- Today community awareness on this issue has grown tremendously, and people continue to donate and volunteer around the world.
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