How is HIV transmitted in Nigeria?
There are three main HIV transmission routes in Nigeria.
Heterosegxwal sex. Approximately 80-95 percent of HIV infections in Nigeria are a result of heterosegxwal sex. Factors contributing to this include a lack of information about segxwal health and HIV, low levels of condom use, and high levels of segxwally transmitted diseases. Women are particularly affected by HIV; in 2009 women accounted for 56 percent of all adults aged 15 and above living with the virus.
Blood transfusions. HIV transmission through unsafe blood accounts for the second largest source of HIV infection in Nigeria. Not all Nigerian hospitals have the technology to effectively screen blood and therefore there is a risk of using contaminated blood. The Nigerian Federal Ministry of Health have responded by backing legislation that requires hospitals to only use blood from the National Blood Transfusion Service, which has far more advanced blood-screening technology
Mother-to-child transmission. Each year around 57,000 babies in Nigeria are born with HIV. It is estimated that 360,000 children are living with HIV in the country, most of whom became infected from their mothers. This has increased from 220,000 in 2007.
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