From: barnhart@ddsw1.MCS.COM (Mr. Aaron Barnhart)
Subject: IPS:KENYA: HEALTH WORKERS ALARMED BY HIGH RATE OF AIDS INFECTION
Date: Wed, 16 Dec 1992 02:55:08 GMT
Organization: Evanston, Illinois, U.S.A.

Copyright Inter Press Service 1992, all rights reserved.  Permission to re-
print within 7 days of original date only with permission from 'newsdesk'.

Reference: Third World Dvpmnt; Women
Title: KENYA: HEALTH WORKERS ALARMED BY HIGH RATE OF AIDS INFECTION


an inter press service feature

by horace awori

nairobi, dec 7 (ips) -- although kenya's health workers keep on
warning that the rate at which aids has spread in the east
african country is alarming, local sugar-daddies cannot kick the
habit of accosting ''dogo dogo'' turn-ons.

teenage girls and boys are daily falling prey to sexual
desires of wealthy elderly men and women in addition to risks of
contracting the human immunodeficiency virus (hiv) which leads
to the terminal stage of acquired immune deficiency syndrome
(aids).

according to the latest government figures, there are 30,700
aids sufferers and 750,000 estimated cases of persons infected
with the hiv virus in kenya. the virus carriers are projected at
1.7 milion by 1996, but kenya medical research institute reports
that they are already above one million.

''we must put an end to the culture of 'dogo dogos' (swahili
slang for teenagers) and all forms of promiscuity'', says
kenya's health minister, jeremiah nyagah, noting that in the
next three years the country will be nursing 415,000 aids
patients, including 115,000 children.

the minister has castigated people who misuse personal wealth
to ruin teenagers and let the hiv creep into the general
population. kenya medical research institute estimates there are
over one million hiv carriers in the country.

meanwhile, the u.n. children's fund (unicef) estimates more
than 300,000 children will be suffering from the disease in the
next three years. the agency is funding aids education
programmes in kenyan schools.

''kenya is at war with aids and many more people will die as
it always happens when a country is at war'', unicef's
communications and information officer, caroline blair, says.

the youth should be at the forefront of the war on aids since
they are the most disadvantaged and also most affected, she told
ips, urging upright behaviour and abolition of traditional
practices through which hiv can be transmitted.

such practices include the sharing of wives among pastoral
communities of the masai people and inheritance of widows within
families of deceased husbands. people are also advised to have
circumcision performed in hospital in case their traditional
initiation rituals involve the rite. (more/ips)


kenya: health (2)

unlike in neighbouring uganda where the aids pandemic has
been much publicised, kenya is not very open about the rapid
spread of the disease although a national awareness and control
programme has been set in motion.

the understatement of hiv and aids cases is apparently tied
to the country's fears that its lucrative tourist trade might
suffer the adverse effects of publicity. tourism is the
country's most important foreign exchange earner.

''some people have refused to believe that aids is real even
after many relatives and friends have fallen victim to the
disease'', says patrick kiparo, a district officer in nairobi.

''they may think that they are protected by wearing condoms
but they must not forget that the condom is not proof against
aids -- it only reduces the risk of infection'', he adds.

a researcher with a development non-governmental organisation
here, francis nowega, says she has been alarmed by the attitude
of street girls.

''one told me that it was walking the streets or starving
and, therefore, fear of aids was secondary'', nowega told ips.
although the girls ask clients to use condoms ''not all agree to
do so''.

nowega fears that those who do not use condoms were probably
aware that they had been infected with hiv and deliberately
wanted to spread the virus.

but kenya does not have enough facilities to screen all
patients who attend hospitals and clinics. however, all blood
for transfusion is screened against aids.

the national aids control programme has promised to continue
giving technical assistance to all organisations working on
controlling the spread of the disease. but the programme is
likely to be affected by the drastic reduction of its funding by
two thirds from the world health organisation.

who representative paul chuke told ips that because of the
great demand on the organsation's resources by many countries,
kenya was this year allocated about 90,000 dollars compared with
260,000 dollars provided last year. (end/ips/ha/ar/92)
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