Introduction
This paper examines the relationship between the high rates of urbanization and the spread of HIV /AIDS in Africa. HIV/AIDS is usually considered a health problem whose spread is a result of the social behavior of people. It has to do with how people relate in work and other social places. Many types of research have shown that there has been an increase in the number of HIV infections in the urban centers as compared to the rural areas in Africa (Niekerk & Kopelman 76). This paper will first analyze the concept of urbanization in Africa and use a case study of Botswana to explain the relationship of HIV/AIDS with the high rate of urbanization in Africa.
Urbanization defined
Urbanization can be defined as the movement of people from the rural areas to the urban areas. This movement results in to increase in the number of people in the towns and cities in a particular year. The process of urbanization results in social economic changes as a result of urban concentration. Urbanization also results in changes in the land use from rural setup to the metropolitan mode of governance and organization (Dyson 2).
Urbanization in Africa
African countries are experiencing fast urbanization. The first cause of this is the increase in population that has resulted from increase in the food supply, better sanitation, and improved medical facilities in the urban areas. In Africa the poverty levels in the rural areas are high thus people move from the rural areas to the urban centers to look for employment. Other people move to the urban centers in order to have access to facilities such as improved infrastructure, good sanitation facilities, and good education.
Urbanization in Africa is mostly driven by the market forces and the government policies. Most companies are set in the urban centers where there is market and other facilities such as electricity and water, this forces the rural population to move to town to provide labor to these investments. Most government policies are designed to provide good facilities in the urban centers leaving the rural areas with no facilities; this makes people move to the urban areas to access these facilities. All these factors have led to the rapid rate of urbanization of countries in Africa (Douglas, Hall, & Anderson 117).
Looking at the table below we realize that the current urbanization has a direct impact on the increase in the HIV prevalence in the African countries. According to the table Botswana has the highest rate of urbanization in the chosen countries and the prevalence rate of HIV and AIDS among its population is also very high.
Botswana
Botswana is one of the countries in Africa with the highest rate of AIDS prevalence, it is estimated that by 2007; 300,000 people had been infected with HIV/AIDS this is about a third of the total population of Botswana as a country. This increase in AIDS in Botswana has been accelerated by the increased urbanization in this country. The urban centers in Botswana are expanding rapidly due to the nature of the economic activities in the country. The population census reports show that the urban population increased from 18 percent in 1982 to 52 percent in 2001. This has been caused by poor infrastructure and social amenities in the rural areas (Africa Fact Files 4).
The relationship of urbanization and HIV/AIDS spread in Botswana
The increased social interaction of people in towns has led to increased HIV/AIDS infections in Botswana. This is because people from different background meets and develops a town culture. This town culture has little or no backing from the original community values. The behavior of people changes due to the interaction of people who comes from different backgrounds. This continued interaction of people in social centers such as clubs and discos has led to increased rate of youth infections in Botswana. This can be explained by the fact that increased social interaction results in increased sexual interaction which is the cause of HIV infections. This is also supported by the growing number of social places in towns to provide the growing population with recreation facilities (World Bank 4).
The growing population in towns has led to development of high-risk behaviors such as commercial sex. There has been an increase in the number of women in the streets who are engaging in commercial sex in Botswana towns. The greater percentage of people in towns is men which has contributed to the need for commercial sex. This has made many people have a non-regular sexual partner which has led to the rapid spread of the inflections. The problem of commercial sex has led to increased sexual mixings which have made the endemic spread like a bush fire (Dyson 4).
Increase in the urban population has led to increased youths in towns; this has led to increased peer influence which has led to rapid spread of AIDS within the young population. The youths are the ones who frequent the social places in most cases such as clubs and discos; there has been an upward trend in Botswana due to increased urbanization. This continued interaction of the youth in the social places has led to their increased sexual interactions which expose them to HIV infections. The rate of infections among the aged between 15 and 19 is on the rise in Botswana and one of the highest in the world. This can be explained by the changes in the social behaviors of towns.
Development of slums and urban poor have also contributed to the rapid spread of HIV infection in towns. When we look at Gaborone we realize there is development of informal settlements. The people who live in these settlements are poor; this forces some of them to engage in activities that expose them to risk of infection. The young women from the slums frequent the town to trade for sex. The other problem is that these people have very little information about AIDS and how it is spread; this makes the spread to be more rapid. The urban poor experience many problems like lack of basic needs which makes them pay little attention to dangers associated with diseases like AIDS.
The other factor that the high rates of urbanization in Botswana are the influence by people from other countries. This is because urban centers serve as channels for new influence in a country. The influence of behaviors such as injection of drugs is on the rise in Botswana. The foreigners who go to work in mining companies are believed to be behind the increase in usage of drugs among the youths. This influence is strong because it is currently considered a growing threat to HIV infection in the country. Such foreign behaviors in the urban centers have contributed greatly to the spread of HIV in the urban centers.
Efforts to compact that have been put place to compact the spread of HIV in Botswana
Public awareness and education
The government of Botswana has come up with a program to create the public awareness about the disease. This program was based on abstinence, use of condoms, and be faithful principles. This program was designed to inform the public on how the disease spreads and how infections can be protected. This is through the radio, TV, and print press, through this initiative community mobilization programs have been developed that target particular groups in the society. Officers have been trained to educate various groups and encourage them to change their sexual behaviors. Through this program peer counseling groups have been formed to synthesize people about HIV/AIDS and the need to change their behaviors. This program has been effective and it has taken HIV education to the people’s doorstep (Avert 6).
Education for young people
Due to the high rates of HIV prevalence among young people the government has come up with a program to educate the youths especially the young women who are affected by the epidemic more than the young men living with AIDS. The government has formed an organization that is concerned with the youth education on HIV/AIDS. This group is responsible for organizing seminars and training to educate the youth about HIV and AIDS. The group also provides the youth with materials that have been developed by the governments about HIV.
Under this program the government has developed a teacher capacity building program. This program has been developed by the government in conjunction with United Nations Development Program. This program is meant to equip the teachers with knowledge in HIV/AIDS and how they can help demystify the phenomenon. This program is based in both the primary and the secondary schools. The young people are taught about sexuality and how they can protect themselves from catching HIV/AIDS infection. The government has also developed an AIDS education TV program that is broadcasted twice to students in schools by Botswana television (Simbayi 5).
Condon distribution and education
The government has come up with a social marketing program that has synthesized the citizens on the condom use. This program has seen an increase in condom use among the Botswana population. The ministry of health has come up with a program to distribute free condoms to the people; these condoms are distributed to public places such as hospitals and bars. The ministry has installed over 10,000 condom dispensers around the country; millions of condoms are procured annually for free distribution.
Targeting high-risk population
The government of Botswana, in conjunction with American government agencies has come up with a program that targets the high-risk adult population; this group includes sex workers, miners, and migrant workers. This program targets the high mobile population in the whole country. It is meant to treat the sexually transmitted diseases, HIV prevention education, and distribute free government condoms. This program has encouraged this category of people to practice safe sex and increased the rate of condom usage (Williams & Southern African Migration Project 67).
This program was provoked by a study in 2003 that indicated that there was a close link between the diamond mining industry and spread of HIV/AIDS. The diamond-mining town of Selebi-Phikwe had HIV/AIDS prevalence rate of 52 percent by then which was leading in the country. This is because commercial sex has increased in these mining towns.
Improvement of blood transmission
The ministry of health has teamed up with Safe Blood for Africa and has come up with a program that has helped in safe blood transmission. The program helps in screening the blood donated in blood banks in hospitals. Another blood donation project called “pledge 25” has also been formed which is used to encourage young people to donate blood.
Prevention of mother to child prevention
In a survey that was conducted in 2002 it was revealed that the HIV/AIDS prevalence on the mothers giving birth was 35.5 percent. With the absence of medical interventions the child born became HIV positive. The ministry developed a program to reduce this kind of infection by giving antiretroviral drugs to HIV-positive women. The prevention of mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) was formed to prevent these infections. This was the first program in Botswana to provide free antiretroviral drugs in Botswana. This program has been very successful and widely used in other African countries. This program has reduced the mother to child transmission drastically in Botswana.
HIV testing and counseling
Voluntary testing and counseling have played a big role in Botswana in prevention of HIV spread. In the year 2000 the government together with tebelopele non-government organizations supported the development of VCT network across the country. This organization synthesized people to know their status campaigns. These campaigns are marketed through advertisements in the media, billboards, and regular radio programs in the country. This program has trained a group of counselors who work in these VCT centers. These counselors have been able to give counseling to many people within the country.
The government has also provided routine checkups. These tests are optional and are conducted in both private and public clinics across the country. This program has helped many to know their status and access early treatment. It has also enabled to prevent further infection, when people know their statuses are able to take care and protect themselves better.
HIV and AIDS treatment
The government of Botswana has developed a program called MASA which is responsible for providing the antiretroviral therapy in the country. This organization was formed in 2002. This organization has been a good success in HIV treatment; it has enrolled many people in the antiretroviral program which has reduced the number of HIV/AIDS-related death. It has also helped reduce the stigma among the HIV-infected people in the country. This program has been caged in public campaigns to encourage the people to be tested so that they can enroll in the program and start early treatment.
Conclusion
The prevalence of HIV/AIDS in urban areas in Africa is higher than in rural areas. The prevalence rate is on the increase in many African countries, this can be attributed to the high rate of urbanization in these countries. This increase in the rate of HIV/AIDS spread in the urban centers is a result of changes in economic and social-cultural environment in towns and cities. These changes have led to rise in the social interaction of people which has resulted in increased sexual contact among the town population. Urbanization has led to increased population in the urban centers which has led to change in the social behaviors of the people which have contributed to increased spread of HIV/AIDS.
Botswana has one of the highest urbanization rates in Africa; this high rate of urbanization is coupled with increased rates of HIV and AIDS in the recent times. The paper has reflected that there is relationship between the high urbanization rate in Botswana and the increased HIV infections. The high urbanization in Botswana is a result of people moving to the urban centers to look for employment and get access to social amenities in the urban centers.
The government has come up with many programs to compact the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Through these programs the government seems to be winning the battle by reducing the number of fresh infections. It has come up with the public awareness programs which are providing the public with education on the effects and prevention of HIV/AIDS. These programs have been successful in information dissemination which has helped the public to unravel the mysteries about AIDS and HIV. The government has also funded the testing and treatment programs that are responsible for providing free testing and counseling services. These programs also provide free treatment to people who are already infected with HIV and AIDS.
Works cited
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Williams, Brians & Southern African Migration Project ‘Spaces of vulnerability: Migration and HIV/AIDS in South Africa’, Southern African Migration Project, Migration Policy Series No. 24, Idasa, Cape Town, 2002.
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