World AIDS Day: HIV in Colombia

December 1st is World AIDS Day. Those readers who know me are aware that before coming to Colombia I worked in HIV/AIDS advocacy in Chicago. Its an issue I am personally devoted to and hope to find a way to continue my involvement here in Bogotá.

In commemoration of the day, I thought I'd write up what I've learned so far about the epidemic here in Colombia. The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that there are 170,000 living with HIV in Colombia. Of these, about 47,000 are women. This translates to a prevalence of about 0.6% in the general population.

Just as in the U.S., gay men and men who have sex with men bear the brunt of the epidemic. In 2002, the most recent year WHO numbers are available, an estimated 19.7% of men who have sex with men in major urban areas are living with HIV. Similar numbers across the globe recently led world leaders to declare at the 2008 International AIDS Conference in Mexico City that entrenched homophobia remains a primary obstacle towards truly effective HIV prevention programming for gay men.

Just as with gay men, the intersection of women and HIV in Colombia mirrors global trends. Lacking other economic opportunities, many women are forced into the sex industry where knowledge and use of protective measures, such as condoms, is far from universal. Furthermore, Colombia's decades-old internal conflict has led to countless instances of physical and sexual violence against women by the armed elements within the country. These factors combine to put many women, especially in rural areas and along the coast, at an increased risk of acquiring HIV.

One of the greatest success stories in the nearly 30 year battle against HIV/AIDS has been the development of highly effective means of preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV. In Chicago, I was proud to work alongside the team that has all but eliminated instances of mother-to-child, or perinatal, transmission in the state of Illinois. Sadly, in Colombia these services are only available to an estimated 6% of HIV-positive mothers.

I have only begun to learn about the domestic HIV/AIDS situation here and my knowledge is indeed lacking. (For example, I have yet to learn anything about Colombia's injection-drug using population.) I hope to continue to uncover more and find a way to become actively involved in Colombia's fight against HIV/AIDS.