The purpose of this study was to find the trends of HIV/AIDs after a ten year period after
the establishment of the free voluntary testing and counseling services. It was a retrospective
study and the national prevalence rate data of ten years period was compared with Mary Immaculate
Testing Center prevalence rates for same period. Over 35,000 people have been
tested there.
The findings demonstrated that the national prevalence rates for the HIV virus have remained
stable e.g. nationally, the prevalence rate of HIV has been as follows: 2004 (7.5%),
2005 (7.3%), 2006 (6.9%), 2007 (7.4%), 2008 (7.8%), 2009 (6.3%), 2010 (6.4%), 2011
(6.2%), 2012 (either 5.6 %? or 6.3 %?), and 2013 was targeted to be 6.8% for ages 15-49.
But for Mary Immaculate, the HIV testing site, the statistics has been: 2004 (15.2%), 2005
(14%), 2006 (11%), 2007 (10.2%), 2008 (7.8%), 2009(5.2%), 2010 (4.2%), 2011 (5.5%),
2012 (4.8%), and 2013 (3.72%). Furthermore, the finding indicated that before 2009, men
were leading in taking the test as compared to women; from 2009 more women have taken
the HIV test as compared to men.
In conclusion, the HIV prevalence rate for the country has remained stable, neither decreasing
nor increasing. There is no established single Institution in the country that gives
reliable statistics, as prevalence rate for 2012 was conflicting from different sources; either
under reported or over reported. Likewise we don’t know exactly how many people are living
with HIV as the reporting’s from different sources gave conflicting figures.