SPEAK OUT

HIV
AIDS IN SOUTHERN AFRICA

Data from Bristol Meyer Squibb

In South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Lesotho and Swaziland, HIV/AIDS is particularly devastating to women and children. Women account for half of all infected adults and in the teen years infection rates are higher in females. In some countries more than 25% of pregnant women are infected - in SA 36% of pregnant women are infected with HIV and risk passing on the virus to their newborn babies. In 5 southern African countries there are close to 100 000 children living with HIV/AIDS. There are now 200 000 AIDS orphans in South Africa alone.

There are 34-million people living with HIV globally (three quarters of whom live in Southern Africa) - most of whom lack access to appropriate nutrition, palliative care, prophylaxis against or treatment for HIV associated opportunistic infections and antiviral drugs - poses especially daunting challenges.

In 1998, sub-Saharan Africa was home to 7 out of 10 people newly infected with HIV, according to UNAIDS/World Health Organisation estimates; among children the proportion was nine out of 10. The region accounted for four fifths of world AIDS deaths in 1998. People in southern Africa are infected predominantly with a singularly aggressive form of HIV -subtype C - which is more easily transmitted and causes sickness faster and death sooner.

At least half of all infected adults are women ages 15-49. At least 95% of all AIDS orphans are African.

In Botswana, Namibia and Swaziland an estimated one in four people are lviign with HIV/AIDS, most undiagnosed In Botswana a quarter of all adults are infected with HIV/AIDS and life expectancy has dropped from 61 five years ago to 46 today, by 2010 the figure is expected to drop to below 38. In SA life expectancy is 48 from 68; in Namibia the figures are 30 from 70 and in Swaziland 37 from 63.

In SA the econoic costs of HIV/AIDS are expected to cost the country 1% of its gross domestic product by 2005 and consume three quarters of the nation's health budget.