Abstract
BACKGROUND: Globally, HIV/AIDS continues to be a serious public health issue. In Sub-Saharan Africa, the incidence of new HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) is gradually rising. Despite efforts being made, the high HIV infection positivity rate of 5% in Kigali among adolescent girls and young women continues to be a cause for concern. OBJECTIVE: To assess factors associated with new HIV infection among AGYW in Kigali. METHODS: The study used a case-control design, whereby cases were AGYW confirmed to HIV positive, while controls were AGYW confirmed to be HIV negative. Using SPSS Version 26, bivariate and multivariable logistic regression analyses were performed to identify HIV infection-associated factors. RESULTS: The majority 748 (96.6%) of the study participants were in the age category of 20-24 years and 487(63.2%) were single. Multivariable logistic regression model showed the following factors as independent predictors: being employed (aOR: 1.43; 95% CI: 1.02-2.03), being resident of Kicukiro (aOR: 1.59; 95% CI: 1.07- 2.36), history of commercial sex worker (aOR: 2.04; 95% CI: 1.29-3.22) and having multiple sexual partners (aOR: .05; 95% CI: 1.41-2.98. CONCLUSION: Public health interventions from key policymakers are needed to strengthen public health strategies of commercial sex workers to reduce new HIV infection including raising awareness through education for HIV Prevention.