| dc.description.abstract | HIV/AIDS continues to be a major challenge to our socio-economic development. Since
the first case was diagonised in Kenya in 1984, it is estimated that over 1.5 million people
have died due to AIDS-related illnesses, resulting in 1.8 million children left as orphans.
It is also estimated that 1.4 million people in the country are living with HIV today.
However, there is hope, as we have noted a decline in the HIV prevalence which reached
a peak of 14 percent in the year 2000, and which has fallen to 7 percent in the year 2004,
due to successful multi-sectoral responses. HIV /AIDS has now become everybody's
concern. The scale up in condom uptake, voluntary counselling and testing services,
antiretroviral therapy and increased co-ordination among stakeholders is expected to
result into a further reduction in HIV prevalence.
Despite this progress, enormous challenges remain. The rate of new infections is still
unacceptably high particularly among vulnerable groups including young girls,
individuals in HIV discordant relationships, commercial sex workers and their clients,
migrant workers and injecting drug users. Equally critical is the challenge of the
availability of affordable treatment for those in need of antiretroviral therapy. Other
challenges include the negative socio-economic impact that HIV/AIDS inflicts on society
as evidenced by the cumulative number of orphans and other vulnerable children, widows
and the elderly as well as high levels of poverty and unemployment in the country.
One worrisome trend has been that HIV / Aids has been killing young people. About 80
per cent of infections occur in people between 15 and 49 years. Of the one million people
infected in 2006,102,000 were below 14 years while 934,000 were in this economically
active age group. Besides being the most sexually active, this group drives various
service sectors.
Many children have sex by the time they reach age 15, a new report says. As a result of
this, children and young people have become vulnerable to sexually transmitted diseases
(STDs) more than ever before.
The focus of this study was on HIV/AIDS Infection Risk Awareness among the rural
youth in Central Division of Kitui District. The study was conducted among youth in
schools and colleges. The study was guided by two theories namely Rational Theory by
Geroge Homan's and the Health Belief Model (HBM) by Rosenstock.
Findings from the study revealed that; Most young people often lack access to sexual
health information and services, cultural social and economical norms and pressures
often put young people at excess risk of HIV IAIDS infection, most of the young people
do not consider themselves to be at high risk of contracting HIV even through they are
characterized with unsafe practices such heterosexual practices, early marriages and
having multiple partners among others.
Recommendations arising from this study are that; There is need for parents and
guardians to be trained on health education specifically on sexuality, Improving access to
HIV information for young people would help lower their infection risk. | en |
