Kenya's progress on HIV

PAULINE MWANGANGI.
 *_DPSM/01/0516/2_ 017*
   HIV AND AIDS.

The first case of HIV in kenya was detected in 1984 and by the mid 1990s, it was one of the major causes of mortality in the country.The AIDS epidemic,a staggering challenge by  any measure becomes more complex every year.The number of people infected with HIV climbs by  14000 daily.Today,more than 13M children currently under the age of fifteen years have lost one or both parents to AIDS,Most in sub Saharan Africa.The stigma has emerged as an unwelcome accessory to HIV/AIDS country after country.
The staging system of HIV infection in children is scheduled to be revised by WHO in consultation with paediatric experts in 2004.In 2011,an estimated 18.3% of people who inject drugs in kenya were living with HIV.In 2012,kenya introduced needle and syringe programme to help reduce HIV transmission among people who inject drugs.In addition,young Kenyan women are more than three times more likely to be infected with HIV.As a result,HIV testing and counseling has become a mojor feature of Kenya's HIV response.The national AIDs control council is  the body responsible for coordinating the response to the HIV epidemic in kenya.
In 2016, kenya became the second country in sub Saharan Africa to issue full regulatory approval of preexposure prophylaxis,which uses antiretroviral drugs to protect HIV negative people from HIV before potential exposure to the virus.
The  government has only actively promoted the use of condoms since 2001,In 2013,around 180m free condoms were distributed although this fell far below demand.HIV education and awareness is an important component of HIV prevention in Kenya.The most recent policy on HIV education published in 2013 aims to develop programmes to enhance HIV prevention, care and support for school pupils as well as education personnel eg teachers.It emphasises that strategies must be gender sensitive because women and girls are mostly affected by the epidemic.

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