Billion Facts, Mysteries & Curiosities

Young People and HIV
• An estimated 6,000 youth each day become infected with HIV — one every 14 seconds. The majority are young women.
• Young people at the age of 15 to 24 account for half of all new HIV infections: a total of approximately 3 million a year.
• At the end of 2001, an estimated 11.8 million young people aged 15-24 were living with HIV/AIDS. Only a small percentage of these young people know they are HIV-positive.
• An estimated 7.3 million young women are living with HIV/AIDS, compared to 4.5 million young men. Two thirds of newly infected youth aged 15-19 in sub-Saharan Africa are female.
• Worldwide, young women (15-24 years) are 1.6 times as likely as young men to be HIV positive.
• More than 13 million children under age 15 have lost one or both parents to AIDS. The overwhelming majority of these AIDS orphans live in Africa. By 2010, their number is projected to reach 25 million.