AEGiS-14IAC: Alcohol use and high risk sexual behavior among adolescents and young adults in Harare, Zimbabwe.

14th International AIDS Conference

Barcelona, Spain - July 7-12, 2002

Alcohol use and high risk sexual behavior among adolescents and young adults in Harare, Zimbabwe.

Int Conf AIDS 2002 Jul 7-12; 14:(abstract no. D11100)

Mataure PN, McFarland W, Kim A, Woelk G, Ray SR, Rutherford G
Southern Africa AIDS Information Dissemination Service (SAfAIDS), Harare, Zimbabwe

BACKGROUND: In order to guide HIV prevention efforts among high-risk youth, we surveyed alcohol use and sexual behavior among persons 15-21 years old in Harare, Zimbabwe.

METHODS: We conducted a cross-sectional quantitative and qualitative survey of youth sampled at nightclubs and other alcohol outlets (bottle stores). Further insight on the findings of the survey was obtained through participant observation, key informant interviews, and focus group discussions with youth encountered at the venues.

RESULTS: Of 384 eligible youth approached, 305 (79%) agreed to participate in the survey, including 78 (20%) females, and 227 (80%) males - a gender distribution approximating attendance at the drinking venues. Youth frequented the alcohol outlets 3 to 4 times per week; 49% of females and 45% of males drank to intoxication at least once in the preceding week. Most (94% of females, 65% of males) were sexually active; 42% of females and 32% of males reported sex under the influence of alcohol in the last 3 months. Commercial sexual relationships (often between young females and older men) were often initiated at nightclubs; 63% of females surveyed had received money for sex and 18% of males reported having paid for sex in the last 3 months. Condom use in the last 3 months was generally high with commercial sex partners (95% of females, 79% of males), but low with steady partners (67% of females, 52% of males) and live-in partners (33% of females, 20% of males).

CONCLUSIONS: Our findings corroborate a cycle of HIV transmission that involves older males, younger females, and ultimately the steady partners of both and suggest a role for alcohol and/or alcohol-serving venues in transmission. Nightclubs and other drinking establishments catering to youth can provide opportunities to prevent HIV transmission through stuctural interventions or targeted outreach education.

Keywords: AEGIS, Alcohol Drinking, Sex Behavior, Substance-Related Disorders, Sexual Partners, Zimbabwe, Safe Sex, HIV Infections, Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome, Data Collection, Adolescent Behavior, Coitus, HIV Seropositivity, Interviews, Adolescent, Adult, Human, Female, Male, Adolescence

020707
D11100