As the world celebrates the International Day for HIV/AIDS, it is important to remember that the virus, much as gains have been made to suppress it, it remains very much a threat to the world population and to Rwanda in particular. In Rwanda, the prevalence has recently dropped to 2.6 per cent, up from the most recent figure which was 3 per cent, a demonstration of the efforts in place to contain the virus. However, these efforts must be sustained and everyone should be alive to this year’s global call to action, which is ‘equality’ across different interventions including the access to information and HIV treatment and therapy for all categories of people. Most specifically for Rwanda, it will be marked under the theme “Youth, let’s be at the forefront in HIV/AIDS Response” to increase awareness among young people of the life-threatening virus with access to information, testing, and treatment services. The focus on the youth is important because, after almost four decades since the virus was first identified and the mayhem it caused in the 80s up to the turn of the millennium may not have been witnessed by most people in the youth bracket currently. As years go by and therapies improve, it is easy for people to slack and forget of the dangers that are associated with the virus, which is most important to make deliberate efforts targeting the youth. This is also backed by data because, according to findings from the Rwanda Population-based HIV Impact Assessment (RPHIA) conducted in 2019, HIV prevalence was approximately two or more times greater in older adolescent girls and young women (15-24 years). Like the saying goes, information is power. Access to information may therefore go a long way in reducing not just the prevalence rate, but also the viral load among those who are infected because it will mean that they have access to drugs and other therapeutics.
