The Ministry of Health has come out to clarify reports purporting an increase in the prevalence of HIV in Nairobi following concerns and confusion over the accuracy of the information.
Speaking on Monday night during an interview on Citizen TV, Stephen Ndolo, Director at the National Syndemic Disease Control Council, clarified that HIV prevalence in Nairobi has actually decreased.
This came after Nairobi Governor Johnson Sakaja sought clarification on the accuracy of figures suggesting an increase in the county's HIV rate.
According to Ndolo, Nairobi saw a decline in HIV prevalence from 4.2 per cent to 3.7 per cent over the last year, a move that he said showed the government's efforts in preventing the spread of the deadly virus.
"What I meant is that the HIV prevalence in Nairobi has actually decreased. It was 4.2 per cent, now it is 3.7 per cent," Ndolo clarified.
He went on to add, "It has gone down, but when you look at the absolute numbers because of the high denominator, you might think Nairobi has more infections."
He, however, warned that despite the drop in the rate of HIV infections in Nairobi, the infection rate in the country had significantly increased between 2023 and 2024.
"That should not take away the fact that there is an unacceptably high number of new infections in the country," he reiterated.
The clarification comes on the back of reports suggesting that Nairobi County led in new HIV infections, followed by Migori, Kisumu, Homa Bay, Busia, Siaya, Kakamega, Nakuru, Mombasa and Bungoma.
According to the report that had been initially released by the National Syndemic Disease Control Council, the above counties accounted for 60 per cent of new HIV infections in the country in 2024.
The agency noted that in 2024, HIV prevalence in the country stood at 3 per cent, with higher rates among females at 4 per cent compared to the male counterparts at 2 per cent.
The survey report further showed that HIV related deaths increased by 0.05 per cent in 2024, which translates to 21,007 deaths compared to 2023, which saw 18,473 deaths.
