Rwanda
The first case of HIV/AIDS in Rwanda was reported in 1983. Just three years later, with the national HIV prevalence rate at 17.8 percent among urban populations and 1.3 percent among rural populations, Rwanda was one of the African countries most affected by HIV/AIDS. The Rwandan genocide of 1994 increased the risk of HIV infection, and thousands of survivors contracted the virus as a result of systematic sexual violence and rape against women. Following the genocide, the first data collection on HIV prevalence took place in 1996 in 10 sentinel sites. At these sites, the infection rate was 27 percent among the urban
population, 13 percent among the semi-urban
population, and 6.9 percent among the rural population. Moreover, an estimated 70 percent of woman survivors who were raped during the conflict were infected with the virus. The rise in the prevalence rate was especially significant since approximately 800,000 people, 20 percent of the entire population, were killed during the genocide.
In collaboration with the Rwandan Government, key strategic priorities for USAID/PEPFAR in Rwanda include HIV/AIDS prevention, counseling and testing, care and treatment, and health systems strengthening activities. Prevention activities are focused on preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV (PMTCT), sexual transmission, biomedical prevention, and integrated counseling and testing services. The PMTCT program focuses on providing follow-up for mothers and their infants and early infant diagnosis and improving the PMTCT referral system. Other strategic priorities include access to basic health care and support services, TB-HIV services, and care and support services for orphans and vulnerable children.
View the full USAID
HIV/AIDS Health Profile for Rwanda - October 2010 [PDF, 167KB].
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