Madagascar sees rapid rise in HIV infections, activists warn of worsening crisis

At Mad’Aids, an Antananarivo association focused on HIV prevention, volunteers gather weekly to discuss alarming trends. Alexandra, a former sex worker in her forties, conducts around fifty tests monthly in the city's poorer neighborhoods and finds an average of ten new infections, citing declining condom use among clients. Finoana, who works with the LGBT community, and Gérard, a drug user, report comparable results, and also note occasional cases emerging outside traditional high-risk groups.

The surge challenges the previous perception that Madagascar, as an island nation, was relatively insulated from the epidemic that has devastated neighboring southern African countries. Government data confirm that the number of HIV-positive individuals has more than doubled over a two-year span, underscoring a rapidly escalating public-health threat.