Age-mixing - Young women have partners 5

1
Age-mixingYoung women have partners 510 years
older than themselves
Age-difference (numbers of years older/younger)
between female respondent and most recent sexual
partner for respondents aged 17-24 years,
Manicaland, Zimbabwe, 1998/2000
50
41
40
30
28
27
Proportion ()
The substantial age difference between female and
male sexual partners is a major behavioural
determinant of the more rapid rise in HIV
prevalence in young women than in men.
20
10
3
2
0
Older than male partner
Same age
1-4 years younger
5-9 years younger
10 years younger
Source Sexual mixing patterns and
sex-differentials in teenage exposure to HIV
infection in rural Zimbabwe, Simon Gregson, et
al. THE LANCET (Vol 359 June 1, 2002)