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The study exposes critical gaps in understanding, prevention, and social perception of the virus in the country, reinforcing UNICEF's call to value evidence through its campaign "Data Matters"
Santo Domingo.- In the context of World AIDS Day, commemorated every December 1st, the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) presents key findings from the Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey (ENHOGAR-MICS 2019), conducted jointly with the National Statistics Office (ONE). The report reflects important advances in knowledge about HIV, as well as persistent gaps in prevention and social attitudes. The survey indicates that 98.4% of women aged 15 to 49 have heard of AIDS and that a considerable proportion identifies the main ways to prevent infection. However, only 38.1% achieve a comprehensive knowledge about HIV, which combines the understanding of protection methods, the recognition of risk, and the rejection of myths. Although most dismiss misconceptions, such as transmission by mosquitoes (63.9%) or by supernatural means (89.9%), perceptions that may limit informed decision-making still persist. Regarding mother-to-child transmission, 91.3% recognize at least one route of infection and 53.5% identify all three possibilities: pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding. Likewise, the coverage of tests during pregnancy remains high: 90.6% accepted and received the results of an HIV test as part of prenatal care. "The data shows that information alone is not enough. We need to strengthen comprehensive sex education, combat stigma, and ensure that every woman, especially the youngest, can make informed decisions to protect her health and that of her families. The Dominican Republic has made progress, but we still face challenges that require sustained action," said Anyoli Sanabria, interim representative of UNICEF in the country. Stigma continues to be a relevant barrier. 41.9% maintain discriminatory attitudes towards people living with HIV, while 90.1% perceive that the fear of social rejection limits testing. This especially affects young women aged 15 to 24, among whom only 32.1% have comprehensive knowledge and barely 24.7% have been tested in the last 12 months and know their result. UNICEF warns that children and adolescents living with HIV continue to be the most lagging group in access to early diagnosis, timely treatment and specialized care, a situation that could worsen in the face of recent global funding cuts.Furthermore, models developed by UNICEF and UNAIDS project that, if program coverage is halved worldwide, an additional 1.1 million children could acquire HIV and more than 820,000 could die from AIDS-related causes by 2040, figures that would reverse decades of progress. Even maintaining current service levels, an estimated 1.9 million new infections and an additional 990,000 child deaths are expected in the same period.
These projections are reinforced by the most recent global data, which shows that thousands of children continue to be left out of treatment: only 55% receive antiretroviral therapy, while the burden of new infections and deaths continues to be high worldwide.You may be interested in: PAHO: Early diagnosis of HIV would reduce AIDS deaths in Latin America and the Caribbean
However, progress is possible. Between 2000 and 2024, HIV services averted more than 4.4 million infections and 2.1 million child deaths. Faced with this situation, UNICEF calls on governments and partners to protect and prioritize HIV services for mothers, children and adolescents; strengthen the prevention of mother-to-child transmission; expand pediatric treatment; and integrate HIV care into more robust health systems, supported by sustainable and innovative financing mechanisms.
