Most People with HIV in Indonesia are Aged 25-49 as of September 2023

The Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) recorded that the number of HIV (human immunodeficiency virus) cases in Indonesia is projected to reach 515,455 cases during January-September 2023.

Of this total, 454,723 cases, or 88%, have been confirmed by the sufferers or people with HIV (ODHIV). Kemenkes stated that only 40% of ODHIV are receiving HIV treatment.

"The biggest gap is how to get those ODHIV to start treatment," said the Director of Prevention and Control of Infectious Diseases at Kemenkes, Imran Pambudi, in a virtual press conference on Thursday (December 30, 2023).

According to age, the majority of HIV sufferers in Indonesia are from the 25-49 age group, accounting for 69.9% of the total cases.

The second largest group is the 20-24 age group, accounting for 16.1%. This is followed by those over 50 years old at 7.7% and 15-19 years old at 3.4%.

Sufferers in the children's segment, namely toddlers or those over 4 years old, account for 1.9%, and those aged 5-14 years old account for 1%.

In response to the high number of HIV cases in Indonesia, Kemenkes is implementing a number of control measures such as health promotion, prevention, case finding, and case management.

"We are implementing a combination of prevention measures in key populations, ranging from providing condoms, lubricants, STI screening and treatment, sterile syringes, and methadone maintenance therapy," said Imran.

(Also read: [New Infection Cases and Deaths Tend to Decrease, This is the Journey of HIV in the World in the Last 10 Years])