HIV in Zimbabwe: the Negative Effects on Women

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HIV has been a major problem for people in Africa. HIV/AIDS is the main killer of people in Africa and has been for a long time. The problem is that people in Africa do not have enough education to fully understand the importance of HIV and how it is passed on from person to person. In a male dominated society, like that of Zimbabwe, the women do not have very much power over when and how sexual acts are performed. The age of young women and when they first have sex has a great impact on the chances of whether or not she will acquire HIV. Then if a woman does acquire HIV, her life becomes full of new questions and complications. The problem of HIV in Zimbabwe is one that greatly affects the lives of everyone, but when a woman is infected, the consequences are far greater. Many women in Zimbabwe did not know a lot of facts about HIV and how to prevent HIV. Most women did not use any sort of contraceptives because they were ignorant of how HIV was passed on from one individual to another. They had heard of HIV but had very little information about it and knew even less about the transmission of it. In one study complete in 2001, more than half of the women interviewed knew nothing about HIV prevention, and if they did know about it they did not see how it affected them personally. Women thought that HIV could only affect a certain type of woman. In the same study, the women interviewed characterized HIV with women who had many partners and they thought that if a woman was married, that woman would not have to worry about HIV. One of the women who were interviewed said, “I did not protect myself because I had confidence in myself, and I knew I would not get HIV because I was faithful. HIV affects those who are not faithful so I never thought about getting it.” Women thought that if they had only one sexual partner then they would not have to worry about

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