SUDAN: Concern over returning refugees

Peace in Sudan's south and west could lead to an uptick in the spread of HIV/AIDS by returning refugees, the UN Population Fund (UNFPA) has warned.

"The fact that many Sudanese will return to their homes from countries where the HIV/AIDS prevalence is very high will doubtless increase the likelihood of a further spread of the epidemic," UNFPA said in a newsletter on Sudan.

With an estimated 2.6 percent of the general population living with HIV, UNFPA says the current infection rate is already considered an epidemic.

Ishmael Gulliver of the Sudan Evangelical Mission, which has been running HIV/AIDS awareness-raising programmes in southern Sudan since 2000, called the situation "severe", as HIV testing centres had found preliminary infection rates of four to 10 percent among those tested in the southern town of Rumbek and up to 17 to 21 percent in Yambio, near the border with the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

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[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]