HIV/AIDS and Malaria Prevalence in Ethiopia

By: Krista G

Due to the extreme economic problems Ethiopia is struggling with, the low education rates within the country, the issue of “brain drain,” and the lack of health care facilities, disease is very widespread. Diseases that are one hundred percent preventable and/or treatable in more developed countries, such as the countries within Europe and North America, are mass murderers in Ethiopia. Two of these deadly diseases are HIV/AIDS and malaria. Although malaria is not even seen in developed countries and HIV/AIDS is able to be treated, they are serious diseases in Ethiopia that take the lives of millions each and every year.

According to UNAIDS, Sub-Saharan Africa remains the region most heavily affected by HIV worldwide, accounting for sixty-seven percent of all people living with HIV and for seventy-two percent of AIDS-related deaths in 2008. Although it is very difficult to get exact statistics due the lack of knowledge about HIV/AIDS in

Ethiopia, the small amount of testing centers, and the many people that do not receive testing, it is estimated that as of 2008, Ethiopia had 890,000 people living with HIV/AIDS. When ranked based solely on the number of people living within the country that have HIV/AIDS, Ethiopia is ranked eleventh worldwide. Based on the HIV/AIDS prevalence rate compared with the entire population, Ethiopia is ranked twenty-fifth. The adult HIV prevalence rate (ages 15-49) is at 2.1%. An estimated 530,000 women and 92,000 children are HIV positive. There are 650,000 orphaned children due to HIV/AIDS, meaning that one or more of their parents has died from the disease, and 67,000 AIDS deaths per year (hivinsite.ucsf.edu).

There are many obstacles that stand in the way to HIV prevention, testing, and treatment in the country. “Eighty-five percent of the population lives in rural areas and suffers from a severe lack of access to public health services. There is also a critical shortage of physicians (an estimated 1,200 in public service practice) and other trained health care workers. Further, per capita expenditures for health from all sources is only US$5.60 compared to US$12.00 per person in the Africa region as a whole” (africanservices.org). This lack of healthcare has only quickened the spread of HIV in Ethiopia, and it is estimated that fewer than ten percent of people know their HIV status.

Globalization and religion are seen as major helping efforts in combating HIV/AIDS in Ethiopia. There are many groups of religious missionaries, volunteers, and organizations today, such as the African Services Committee, that are volunteering in trying to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. These organizations set up testing units to bring HIV prevention education and free, confidential testing to people in Ethiopia, especially in rural communities. There are also programs where volunteers meet monthly with families who have HIV positive children, monitor treatment, provide nutritional supplements, treat infections, and provide referrals to educational resources for their children. One of the major reasons for the spread of HIV in Ethiopia and the main reason why more women than men have HIV/AIDS is prostitution. Organizations like the African Services Committee are able to create opportunities for women formerly engaged in sex work by launching an HIV prevention leadership and outreach program. Most importantly, many organizations are able to provide antiretroviral treatments to prolong the lives of people with HIV/AIDS and also give out condoms to help prevent the spread. The people in Ethiopia need to be educated on this topic and must also be given treatment opportunities that they would otherwise not be able to afford in order to survive.


Malaria is another major public health issue in Ethiopia, with about 9 million malaria cases annually, and only 4-5 million cases that are treated. The issue of malaria began with the epidemic of 1958 and resulted from the increased number of the Anophele Gambiae mosquitoes. This was due to the excessive rainfall and temperatures that were higher than normal. Today, P. Falciparum and P. Vivax are two common malarial parasites in the region, with the former considered the more severe of the two. Malaria represents the largest single case of morbidity in Ethiopia, killing about 70,000 per year, and

is responsible for about twenty percent of deaths for children under five years of age. Malaria is prevalent in seventy-five percent of the country, putting over 50 million people at risk, and large scale epidemics tend to occur every five to eight years due to climatic fluctuations. Children and pregnant mothers are among the most vulnerable. “Malaria is also known to speed up the onset of AIDS in anyone
who is HIV positive. Those living with HIV in high-risk areas are also amongst the most vulnerable” (unicef.org).

Globalization and religion have been taking a central role in the prevention of malaria cases. “UNICEF is currently working with the Ethiopian Government and other bodies to create the Roll Back Malaria or RBM program, the largest anti-malaria campaign in Ethiopia's history. It aims to reduce morbidity and mortality of malaria by half by the year 2010” (unicef.org). They have successfully completed this, as it has been reported that there has been a fifty-four percent decline in malaria cases and a forty-eight percent decline in malaria deaths. The most important efforts made by missionaries and global organizations have been the widespread distribution of Insecticide-Treated Mosquito Nets (ITNs). Millions of ITNs have been distributed so far, successfully decreasing the spread of malaria, reducing the mortality rate for children under five by fifty percent, and significantly reducing the percentage of people who become reinfected after already being cured. The fight against malaria

can not be won with the use of ITNs alone. Organizations such as UNICEF are assisting the Ethiopian government by providing millions of treatments with the new anti-malarial drug, Coartem, as well as enacting programs to educate the Ethiopian people on the disease and how it is contracted and spread.

Ethiopia is a severely underdeveloped country where HIV/AIDS and malaria are two major epidemics that annually take the lives of thousands. Through the continued help of globalization and religion tactics, such as giving out treatment, sending educated professionals to Ethiopia to care for the sick, educating people on the diseases, and donating money to the Ethiopian government or organizations that help combat these diseases, Ethiopia will be able to save millions of innocent lives and continue on a slow path to becoming self-sufficient.

(Photo Credit: http://www.avert.org/aids-picture.php?photo_id=3086, http://www.appletreeblog.com/?p=6123, http://www.unaff.org/2006/f_malaria.html, http://www.earthinstitute.columbia.edu/news/2006/story03-27-06.php)