The HIV Situation

The current HIV/AIDS situation in Africa is shocking and deeply sad. Here in Australia the precautions for HIV is well known, and treatment is well established. In Africa it is a totally different story.

In Africa:

• 91 percent of the world’s HIV-positive children live in Africa.
• Since the epidemic of HIV/AIDS, more than 60 million people have contracted the illness, and over 30 million have died from an HIV-related cause
• 71 percent of the HIV/AIDS-related deaths in 2011 were people living in Africa.
• Due to an insufficient supply of antiretroviral drugs and health care providers in 2010, only 5 of the 10 million HIV-positive patients in Africa were able to receive treatment
• Because of HIV/AIDs, the average life-expectancy in Africa is 54.4 years of age. In some countries in Africa, it’s below 49.
• The HIV/AIDS epidemic has drastically slowed the economic growth and social development in Africa, because hundreds of thousands of people are unable to work or receive an education.
• If a pregnant woman is not treated with the proper antiretroviral drugs, there is a 20-45 percent chance that her infant will contract the virus from her during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding. Because 59 percent of HIV-positive people in Africa are women, the vast majority of children diagnosed with HIV have had the virus passed from their mothers.
• More than one million adults and children die every year from HIV/AIDS in Africa alone. 
• Out of the 34 million HIV-positive people worldwide, 69 percent live in Africa. There are roughly 23.8 million infected persons in all of Africa, many of these people are children.

South Africa, where I am heading, has been suggested to be one of countries most impacted by the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the world. 

In South Africa:

• 5.6 million people living with HIV/AIDS in 2008.
• One in Four people age 15 to 49 years are infected with HIV.
• Over 1,700 people die as a result of AIDS related illnesses each day.
• It is currently estimated that there is more than 600,000 orphaned children as a result of AIDS
• Studies have shown that South African citizens spend more time at funerals than weddings, haircuts or grocery shopping. 

Words can't describe the sadness of this situation.