In a comparison of young men’s sexual behaviours in six African countries, average age of first sexual intercourse fell in Ethiopia, Nigeria, and Tanzania between 1996 and 2006, but increased in Mozambique, Rwanda, and Uganda, the UN agency charged with the HIV fight said yesterday.
In Rwanda, the percentage of young people aged 15-24 who had sex before the age of 15 is said to be at 13% among males and just 4 percent with the females.
But campaigners that are battling the disease in the country say that should be no cause for worry because outstanding successes have been scored in rising awareness.
Ms. Agnes Binagwaho, executive secretary of the National HIV/Aids Control Commission said she would have to wait more definitive national data before committing more resources to sexual abstinence efforts.
She told Bloomberg that a national survey of youth sexual behavior in Rwanda, where about 3 percent of people are infected, will be completed in 2010.
“I need to verify that data to advise my government on policies and strategies,” she said. “It's a lot of money and to be sure that we invest every dollar, every franc, in the best way, we need true and verified national data.”
While Rwandans seemed to be having sex at very young age, the UN said the global trend toward delayed sexual debut is clear, apparently surveys reveal substantial variations between countries.
Young adults aged 15 through 24, who account for almost half of new infections in adults, are said to be becoming more aware of how to avoid AIDS.
The percentage of teenagers having sex before age 15 fell in all regions. The share of females in Cameroon having sex before age 15 fell to 14 percent in 2007 from 35 percent in 2004.
In Rwanda, antiretroviral coverage increased from 1 per cent in 2003 to almost 60 per cent in 2007. Some 53,000 people are on ARVs according to the TRAC Plus – the government agency in charge of the medication programme.
Compared to its regional partners, there seemed to have been a curb on new infections in Rwanda but in Kenya and Uganda, things do not to work out very well for campaigners there.
According to Peter Piot, the UNAIDS Executive Director, Ugandans are becoming more complacent towards the virus. This means that they are taking the disease for granted.