The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Malawi

In Africa south of the Sahara desert, nearly 21 million people are living with HIV/AIDS. In 13 countries in the region at least 10% of all adults are infected with HIV/AIDS and the prevalence rates in many capital cities are 35% or more. Botswana and Zimbabwe have reached a prevalence rate of 25%, or one out of every four adults in the country is infected. And in nearby Malawi, the prevalence rate is 15% among adults and increasing daily. The Malawi Government recognizes HIV/AIDS as a serious public health and socioeconomic problem requiring multisectoral involvement. Below is an overview of the epidemic's magnitude, the cultural practices facilitating its proliferation and how nurses are joining the country's community mobilization strategy.