AIDS orphans, most of whom have lost their mothers, are particularly vulnerable to “sugar daddies” who materially support them in exchange for sex, says Health Minister Aaron Motsoaledi.
The minister said sugar daddies were responsible for prolonging the Aids pandemic in Southern Africa, describing it as a “vicious cycle”.
Quoting research done in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, Motsoaledi said the majority of those infected with HIV were teenage girls.
“Caprisa just went to six schools do HIV counselling in Grades 9 and 10 and found that 4% of the boys were positive but when it comes to the girls it’s 28%,” said Motsoaledi.
He said the “big gap” in the figures showed that those boys, who had been tested, were not having sex with their female peers.
“The girls are getting it somewhere else, and that’s what we call sugar daddies,” said Motsoaledi.
He said Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga had asked him to look into the phenomenon at some schools, where many of the pregnant girls were often Aids orphans.
“We’ve got 1.3-million orphans in South Africa. Those orphans are mostly maternal orphans – their mothers are gone.
l The Health Minister yesterday announced the first recipients of a programme to fully fund the studies of health professionals towards attaining their PhD’s.
The programme, which is being funded to the tune of R15-million in its first year, aims to double the number of health researchers and academic health professionals in South Africa by training and graduating 1000 PhD’s in a decade, with an initial target figure of 300 students after four years.
Aids orphans ‘open to sugar daddy abuse’
The minister said sugar daddies were responsible for prolonging the Aids pandemic in Southern Africa, describing it as a “vicious cycle”.
Quoting research done in the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands, Motsoaledi said the majority of those infected with HIV were teenage girls.
“Caprisa just went to six schools do HIV counselling in Grades 9 and 10 and found that 4% of the boys were positive but when it comes to the girls it’s 28%,” said Motsoaledi.
He said the “big gap” in the figures showed that those boys, who had been tested, were not having sex with their female peers.
“The girls are getting it somewhere else, and that’s what we call sugar daddies,” said Motsoaledi.
He said Basic Education Minister Angie Motshekga had asked him to look into the phenomenon at some schools, where many of the pregnant girls were often Aids orphans.
“We’ve got 1.3-million orphans in South Africa. Those orphans are mostly maternal orphans – their mothers are gone.
l The Health Minister yesterday announced the first recipients of a programme to fully fund the studies of health professionals towards attaining their PhD’s.
The programme, which is being funded to the tune of R15-million in its first year, aims to double the number of health researchers and academic health professionals in South Africa by training and graduating 1000 PhD’s in a decade, with an initial target figure of 300 students after four years.
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