ABC for AIDS prevention in Guinea: migrant gold mining communities address their risks

Abstract

Contrary to expectation when compared with other migrant mining zones of sub-Saharan Africa, the nation of Guinea has a comparatively low and stable HIV rate. In addition, the regions with the largest gold, diamond, and bauxite mining operations report the lowest HIV rates within the country. This research set out to explain practices and beliefs within gold mining communities near Siguiri, Guinea – the highest-producing gold mining zone in the country – that may contribute to this phenomenon, particularly as they relate to the Abstinence, Be faithful, use a Condom approach to AIDS prevention. Structured interviews on a randomly selected sample of 460 adults and regular visitation to 16 pharmacies and health clinics within the mining zone yielded data showing that abstinence and condom use are minimally practiced for AIDS prevention. Instead, faithfulness to partners was overwhelmingly reported as the method of choice for AIDS avoidance. In addition, this research explored ways in which local conceptions of fidelity differed from those generally understood in other contexts, including engagement in short-term marriages at the gold mining sites.

Keywords:

• Guinea
• HIV/AIDS
• labor migration
• ABC
• gold mining
• Islam

Acknowledgements

I wish to thank the Adventist Development and Relief Agency – Guinea (ADRA Guinea) for their logistical support throughout the data collection phase of this research project. I also wish to thank my dissertation adviser, Dr. H. Russell Bernard, for his invaluable support and feedback in writing up this data both for defense and subsequent publication.