Three million Nigerians are currently estimated to be living with HIV/AIDS, making
it the third largest country with number of infected persons (USAID, 2010). Prevalence
among young women ages 15 to 24 is nearly four times higher than the prevalence
among young men, at 2.3% compared to 0.8% (USAID, 2010). This study sought to
examine some of the social factors that predispose women in Nigeria to HIV/ AIDS, by
focusing on both the religious and gender dimensions of HIV/AIDS risk. For the majority
of Nigerians, religion is more than an organized system of beliefs. Nigerians, on average,
attend a church, mosque or other religious service more often than most other
nationalities (Oluduro, 2010). Therefore, any HIV/AIDS prevention program that does
not recognize the effect of religion on Nigerians could fail.
Also, Gender inequality is marked in Nigeria: the nation is ranked 120th in the 2011
Global Gender Gap Report of the World Economic Forum. As shown below, gender
v
inequality relegates women to the background in terms of access to economic and social
freedoms, and poses a major threat to public health issues such as the HIV/AIDS.
Christianity and Islam, the two major religions in Nigeria, have similar and different
views on factors that predispose women to HIV/AIDS. This study compared and
contrasted the effect of Christianity and Islam on HIV/AIDS risk among women across
the regions. From the results below, the role of religion in HIV/AIDS prevention and risk
is multifaceted. For example, direct effect of religious doctrines like abstinence could
have a positive or negative effect on HIV/AIDS risks. While it is clear from the results
below that factors like education, wealth/ income and healthcare access play an important
role in the HIV/AIDS risks, it was also clear that gender inequality and religion
influences these factors.