THE REPORT

Nyanza leading in the number of new HIV infections came as no surprise to those who have been in Kenya for the past 30 years. The areas highlighted seem to have some four common factors.

These four factors have contributed almost entirely to this damning report. Chiefly among them is the lake and activities going around it. Lake Victoria has been a source of economic livelihood to many in Nyanza. At the same time it has swallowed many of our youths in its expanse.

Most of those working in the lake are school drop outs. They do not know how to manage money they get. They see it as what should be spent on wooing girls in school and widows. They do not care about protected sex as they lack the rational mind to argue against such behaviour.

Widowed women who have no source of livelihood find solace in these shores. They have nothing to lose and so go to the shores to waylay the young men for easy cash. They engage in wanton sex in the name of you only live once. This has made the virus to hit hard places like Homa Bay, Sori Bay, Kisumu, Muhuru Bay and Siaya.

The second factor is wife inheritance. Most deaths to young couples have been because of AIDS. When such a widow is inherited with a supposedly healthy man the virus finds a conduit to spread further. These men also have other young girls on the side on the side who they engage in sex with without protection. This takes the spread out of hand.

We have assumed that wife inheritance was a past culture but it is still going on. It is being done in secrecy and it continues to swallow the unsuspecting of our generation. The reality is that this practice is on the rise and if not stopped we will soon be back to the past.

The third factor is the introduction of Voluntary Male Medical Circumcision (VMMC). Since this campaign started cases of new HIV infections have been on the rise. The campaign was sold wrongly. The youths thought that with circumcision they got the cure for AIDS. They engage in sex without using protection in the name of being circumcised. Cases of reckless sex have risen rapidly.

The fourth factor is the waning level of education. There is a direct relationship between low level of education and rising infection rates. Nyanza used to be a powerhouse in academics until some years back. There has been a lack of emphasis and importance attached to education of late and the results has been a large pool of drop outs and low school enrollment rates. Many youths are not going to school while those who go most do not go beyond class eight. This has made the fight against the spread of this virus very hard. Idle youths use sex as a leisure activity.

Let us enlighten the village folks of the bad cultural practices that should be left behind such as wife inheritance. Our leaders should also give education precedence so that idle youths are engaged. Lastly, we should repackage the VMMC campaign so that it does not seem to send out the wrong message. Circumcision is just a preventive measure and not a cure for HIV/AIDS.