AIDS has left its mark on every village in Namibia, on some more than on others. But one thing is true for everybody: the impact of AIDS made us change. It’s altered our relationships and the way we’re intimate. It’s changed the way we have sex and even the way we think about it.
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* 24.5 million of the 34.3 million people world wide carrying HIV/AIDS are African.
* 7 of 10 people newly infected with HIV/AIDS in 1998 live in sub-Saharan Africa.
* In 1999, about 3.8 million Africans became infected with HIV, and a total of 10.7 million children were estimated to be orphaned by it.
* Of those infected with HIV/AIDS in 1998 under the age of 15, 9 of 10 lived in sub-Saharan Africa.
* At least 95% of all AIDS orphans have been African, yet only one-tenth of the world's population lives in Africa south of the Sahara.
That change was on the minds of delegates at a women’s conference held in Windhoek recently. They had gathered to talk about ways they could start programs in their own communities so that they could educate the public and fight AIDS. We spoke to some of the attendees.
Elizabeth Kauedii (right) and Sam (left)
What do you do prevent yourself from getting HIV/AIDS?
Martha said, that when she was fourteen she decided to abstain from sex until she got married. Because nowadays, she said, if you don't use a condom you will get AIDS. Condoms are not 100% safe, so the best way is abstain and ask God to protect you from AIDS. Pandu Kondombolo said, Abstaining from sex is the only sure solution. You could use a condom, but it is not 100% safe.
Why are you saying that condoms are not safe?
Because many people are not educated on how to use a condom. Although there is instruction on the packaging of the condom, that doesn't help. Often a person can read what's written there but he/she doesn't understand it at all, especially the uneducated. Even the educated have a problem.
Life Expectancy in African countries
Why are you saying that condoms are not safe?
Because many people are not educated on how to use a condom. Although there is instruction on the packaging of the condom, that doesn't help.Often a person can read what's written there but he/she doesn't understand it at all, especially the uneducated.
Even the educated have a problem.
People don't know that when they put condom on, they must squeeze the
air out of the tip. This where the danger is: once the air gets trapped
in the condom, the friction of sex makes the air put pressure on the sides
of the condom. This is what can cause it to burst. If your partner is
infected then the possibility for you to get infected is very high. This
makes the condom unsafe.
When people realise that their friend or relative are infected they start to reject them, forgetting, that one day they will be in same situation. This is like a circle: today it is your friend or relative. Tomorrow it is you.
Conference attendee Ingrid Kanguakwako
further reading
HIV in Africa exceeds the experts' worst predictions