Exploring the relationship between HIV and alcohol use in a remote Namibian mining community
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Date
2009
Authors
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Journal ISSN
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Publisher
AJAR
Abstract
In southern Africa, the use of alcohol is increasingly seen as creating a context of risk for HIV transmission. This
qualitative study investigates the links between alcohol use and higher-risk sexual behaviours in a remote southern
Namibian mining-town community. Using data from six focus groups and 16 in-depth interviews conducted in
2008, the researchers investigated knowledge of the link between alcohol consumption and HIV risk, focusing on
the specific mechanisms related to drinking and higher-risk sexual behaviours. Although know!edga regarding
HIV and alcohol was high among the mineworkers and other community members, the social structure of a remote
mining town appears to lead to high levels of alcohol use and higher-risk sexual behaviours. The heavy use of
alcohol acts as an accelerant to these behaviours, including as a source of fortitude for those with an intention to
engage in casual sexual partnerships or multiple concurrent partnerships, and as a cause for those behaviours for
people who may otherwise intend to avoid them. The findings suggest a need for HIV-prevention programmes that
focus more holistically on HIV and AIDS and alcohol use, as well as the need for structural changes to mining-town
communities in order to reduce the likelihood of both heavy alcohol use as well as a high prevalence of higher-risk
sexual behaviours.
Description
Keywords
Community profiles, HIV/AIDS, Mineworkers, Prevention, Risk behaviour, Sexual behaviour
Citation
Lightfoot, E. and others. 2009. Exploring the relationship between HIV and alcohol use in a remote Namibian mining community. African Journal of AlDS Research 8(3):321-327.