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Reports indicating that there has been a sharp increase in the number of new infections among adolescents are worrying and point to a problem in society that ought to be addressed urgently.

Due to the use of mobile phones, society has become more permissive and parents are not always aware of what content their teenage and adolescent children are being exposed to. As a result, young people are exposed to sexual content that can lead them to experiment, and because not all have benefitted from reproductive health education, they end up engaging in unprotected sex, often with older people, thus increasing their risk of HIV infection.

Secondly, due to high levels of poverty in rural areas and urban slums, girls are more susceptible to paid-for sex either because they have to feed their siblings or have needs of their own that require them to make money. This also exposes them to multiple sexual partners, which again, increases their risk of HIV infection.

What is more disconcerting is that children between the age of 10 and 19 years form the bulk of those newly infected, meaning there is risk of losing a large proportion of the youthful population to early death or life-long illnesses that reduce their capacity to effectively contribute to economic growth. This is dangerous at very many levels, notably exposing their own children to infection, leaving them orphaned early and burdening their relatives — and the government — with the cost of medical care.

Kenya, like many other countries, has made significant strides in reducing infections, which now stand at a national average of 3.7 per cent of the population. There was a time this stood higher than 25 per cent. Those gains must not be lost.

What is needed urgently is an awareness campaign targeting young people to learn about how to stay safe. However, care must be taken to ensure the campaign does not stigmatise those already infected. Knowledge is power and the best way to equip Kenyan youth to protect themselves from the alarming infection rate is to teach them how HIV is transmitted and how they can avoid infection. Past campaigns worked best because they brought together peer educators, experts, religious institutions, government and healthcare providers. As such, there will be no need to re-invent the wheel.