MODEL ANSWER:

Information regarding the South African population over 15 who were screened positive for HIV in 2008 is illustrated in the given table.

It is clear from the table that among the African ethnic groups, the worst affected were those who were engaged in formal work (31.7 %). This rate was 4.1 more than their sick/disabled population. HIV among the African housewives and the self-employed population ranged between 20 and 24%. Of the least affected groups, retired employers (2.7%) could evade the infection more effectively than the students (5.3%).

On the other hand, the proportion of the infected population among the non-Africans was the highest in the unemployed sector (3.6%). The proportional disparity between this group to the next worst affected group (sick and disabled) was 0.5%. The viral attack was less prevalent among students and retired non-African employees (0.2%) which was similar in the case of native Africans. A negligible discrepancy is seen among the other mentioned categories (0.1 to 0.5%).

Overall, it is clear that HIV existed in higher proportions among the African ethnic groups compared to the non-Africans in South Africa in the given year.

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