The DHS Program

Nairobi, Kenya. Just over half of Kenya’s hospitals and 12 percent of its health centers now provide antiretroviral treatment (ART) for people living with HIV, according to a recently published national survey. While ART services are still not available to everyone, Kenya’s health care system is increasingly providing these life-saving medicines as well as other prevention and treatment services for people facing AIDS.

Calverton, MD. The 2004 Lesotho Demographic and Health Survey (LDHS) included population-level HIV testing for the first time. Testing was anonymous and strictly voluntary. According to LDHS data, 24% of adults are HIV-positive. LDHS data point to the unequal distribution of the virus. Women are far more likely to be infected than men (26% and 19%, respectively).

DAR ES SALAAM - Significantly more Tanzanian infants are living to see their first birthday than did five years ago, according to the newly released 2004-05 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey (TDHS). The infant mortality rate is now 68 deaths per 1,000 live births, while five years ago the 1999 survey showed an infant mortality rate of 99 deaths per 1,000 live births.

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania. Only 16 percent of children under age five slept under an insecticide-treated net (ITN) the night before their households were interviewed, according to the newly released Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey. Health officials recommend that all children under age 5 and pregnant women sleep under ITNs to prevent malaria, which is the leading cause of death for children and adults in this east African country.

DAR ES SALAAM, Tanzania. The 2004-05 Tanzania Demographic and Health Survey (TDHS) released on Wednesday revealed that health indicators for Tanzanian children have improved markedly in the past five years, while family planning and fertility rates are unchanged from the last survey conducted in 1999. Knowledge of HIV/AIDS is high, but less than one-third of men and women know how to prevent maternal-to-child transmission of HIV/AIDS.