AIDS prevention in Zambia: implications for social services

The incidence of AIDS continues to be higher in the African continent than elsewhere in the world. In Zambia, given the current pace of infection, projections suggest that approximately two million Zambians are likely to die toward the end of this decade. In this paper, we argue that current AIDS educational programs can be substantially reinforced by incorporating the services of family planning agencies in Zambia. Data used for the study come from the Zambia Demographic Health Survey (ZDHS), 1996. We suggest that the social work profession has crucial responsibility for designing AIDS prevention programs. A number of roles that social workers can play based on the values and philosophy of the profession is outlined. Limitations of the study are also discussed. Key words--Africa, Zambia, family planning, reproductive health, AIDS