Knowledge and Attitude of Women to HIV/AIDS in a Farming Community in Southwestern Nigeria: Challenges for Public Libraries

Abstract

The HIV/AIDS epidemic is one of the major setbacks to the achievement of the 2015 millennium development targets in Africa, generally, and Nigeria, in particular, where it is the leading cause of death. In terms of age and gender distribution, the most severely affected are sexually active females in their most economically reproductive years. A greater percentage of the Nigerian population lives in rural areas where there is low access to health information. This study assesses the knowledge level and attitudes of women in a farming community to HIV/AIDS, and suggests intervention strategies by the public libraries to bridge the knowledge gap on HIV/AIDS. This article suggests that public libraries as custodians of knowledge should play a significant role in transmitting information about how to prevent and control HIV/AIDS.