Indian AIDS epidemic becomes ‘feminised’

November 7, 2004

NEW DELHI: Women in India, home to the world’s second

largest HIV population after South Africa, are

becoming more vulnerable to AIDS, leading to a growing

“feminisation” of the epidemic, a UN expert said on

Friday.

India has more than 5.1 million people living with

HIV/AIDS and experts fear it could soon vault to the

top of the world’s list as knowledge about the spread

of the illness is still scant. “Originally, it was

limited to men and sex workers,” Piot, executive

director of the United Nations programme to fight

HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), told Reuters in an interview. “Now,

38 percent of the infected people in India are women.

That’s nowhere near the world average, but it’s still

high.”

Experts say women account for about half the adults

living with HIV/AIDS worldwide.

“There is an increasing feminisation of the epidemic

in India,” Piot said. The US Central Intelligence

Agency says the number of Indians living with HIV/AIDS

could soar to more than 20 million by 2010 as the vast

majority of victims are unaware of being infected and

few have access to anti-retroviral therapy. The Indian

government says the projection is exaggerated. Piot

also said half the world’s new infections were in the

age group of 10 to 24 because of low awareness about

condom use and the growing trafficking of women. Piot

said, “Young people are vulnerable because of their

sexual experimentation as part of growing up and

because of trafficking of women for sexual

exploitation.” reuters

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