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242 new HIV infections in Zim every day - report

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Around 242 people are newly infected with HIV each day in Zimbabwe, state media reported on Wednesday.

The figure shows a drop in the number of new HIV infections from levels reported in 2001, when 348 Zimbabweans were infected every day, the Chronicle newspaper reported.

The HIV incidence rate is the number of new infections in a population. It does not include in the total people who were already infected before the year began.

Read: How HIV treatment affects your bones

Latest statistics from Zimbabwe's National Aids Council show that the national HIV incidence rate last year was 1.1%, down from 1.95% in 2001.

Zimbabwe has one of the world's highest rates of HIV prevalence, at around 15% of the population. At the turn of the century rates were around 1 in 4.

Zimbabwe's success in reducing its HIV prevalence rate has been credited in part to vigorous public HIV education programmes, leading to a reduction in multiple sexual relationships.

Read: Pills before and after sex can help prevent HIV

The risk of acquiring HIV in Zimbabwe is higher in areas near border entry points, research showed.

The Chronicle reported that 63.4% of all adults in Zimbabwe living with HIV are on anti-retroviral treatment. Fifty-five percent of children living with HIV are on the life-prolonging drugs.

An estimated 42.6% of commercial sex workers in Zimbabwe are living with HIV, Amon Mpofu of the National Aids Council said.

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60 percent of sex workers are HIV positive

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