AIDS in Honduras (by Todd)

I've done a little research about AIDS in Honduras, and here's some of what I found. Unless otherwise indicated, all information comes from either:
- the 2004 Report on the Global Aids Epidemic conducted by the Joint United Nations Program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS). The report analyzes census data from 2003.
- or 2005 information on AIDS in Honduras provided by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) which provides $5 million annually to combat AIDS.

Global Perspective: Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest regional incidence of AIDS - 7.5%, with some countries as high as 40%. The Caribbean has the second highest incidence at 2.3%. Central America has the third highest regional incidence of AIDS, estimated at 0.9%.

Regional Perspective: Honduras has the highest AIDS rate in all of Central America; estimated at 1.8% - 63,000 people - in 2003. Even though it holds 17% of Central America's total population, Honduras accounts for 60% of reported AIDS cases in the region.

Some Numbers: Of the 63,000 people with AIDS in Honduras in 2003...
...3,900 were children.
...33,000 were women.
...4,100 died that year.

Regional Prevalence: The prevalence of AIDS in Honduras varies by region. It's highest by far in the Cortes region in the Northeast of the country, particularly in the large city of San Pedro Sula; it's also high in the capital city, Tegucigalpa.

Testing: The majority of people in Honduras do not know their AIDS status. In 2003, only 1% of the population sought testing from government-sponsored programs.

Stigma: There is considerable stigma against people with AIDS in Honduras, to the point that they may be shunned or abandoned by friends and family. This stigma has been identified as one of the major obstacles to an effective response (source: article on the stigma against AIDS in Honduras).


If you want a little more information, that report by USAID provides a good, concise overview.