HIV-positive women in Uganda fear for their health as food shortages leave them unable to take medication
Coronavirus is changing the world in unprecedented ways.
In Uganda, about 1.4 million people, or just over 3% of the population, are living with HIV or AIDS, according to government figures, one of the highest rates in east Africa, with about 23,000 people dying each year and 50,000 new infections.
Uganda has, however, made major strides to combat HIV/AIDS, bringing the infection rate down from 18.5 percent in 1992, according to U.N. data, with one million people on drugs to slow HIV developing and hold off progression into AIDS.
"This element was not addressed at the initial stage of this lockdown due to the pandemic," said Dr. Kaggwa Mugagga, HIV advisor at the World Health Organization (WHO) in Uganda.
Dr Joshua Musinguzi, the AIDS control manager in Uganda's Ministry of Health, said the government has been trying to address problems with food as well as supplying people with the drugs they need.
