Someya1

MiuSomeya
MeganShaffer
EnvironmentalScience
1May2016

TheTragedyinAfrica
FirstabovethedifferencebetweenAIDSandHIV.HIVisavirusthatconstantlyattacks
theimmunesystem,whichisourbodysnaturaldefencetotheillness.AIDSisaconditionor
syndromebeinginfectedwithHIVcanbethestartofgettingAIDS.WhensomeonegetsAIDS
thatpersonsimmunesystemgetstooweaktofightoffmanyinfections,anddevelopswhenthe
HIVinfectionisveryadvanced.ThisisthelaststageofHIVinfectionwherethebodycanno
longerdefenditselfandmaydevelopvariousdiseases,infectionsandifleftuntreated,death
(WhatareHIVandAIDS?p.2).SymptomsrelatedtointenseHIVinfectioncanbesimilarto
thefluorotherillnesses.Theyincludefever,musclepain,headache,sorethroat,nightsweats,
mouthsores,includingyeastinfectionand,swollenlymphglandsbutactuallymanypeoplehave
nosymptomswhentheyfirstgetinfectedbyAIDS/HIV.Thisisareallybigproblemin
Africa.Thereasonitsbigproblemisthatpeoplecantgetwelltreatments.
TwentythreepercentofchildrenwhoareinfectedbyAIDSarebeingtreated(The
BorgenProjectp.1)butstillthatisnotenoughsoitisabigproblemrightnow.Seventeenmillion
AfricansdiedbyAIDSsincetheviruswasfounded(TheBorgenProjectp.1).Thirteenmillion
AfricanchildrenareorphansbecauseofAIDS(TheBorgenProjectp.1).AIDSisthecauseof
aboutonemilliondeathsinAfricaeveryyear(TheBorgenProjectp.1).AIDShascausedthe

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lifeexpectancyinsubSaharanAfricatodropto54.4yearsand,insomecountries,lessthan
fortynineyears(TheBorgenProjectp.1).TheseareallfactsthatisbigprobleminAfricathat
arehappeningandcausedbytheAIDS.Thesethingsneedtogetconsideredmoreasimportant
problem.
InAfrica,eventhebabieshaveAIDSalreadywhentheyareborn.Theseareoneofthe
reasonwhyAidsarespreadinginAfricarapidly.Eventhoughtheyknowthatunprotectedsexis
causingthisproblemtheystilldoit.EventheyhaveAidstheystillhavesexwithoutany
protection.Evenjustwearingacondomswillhelpbutnoteveryonecangetthatsupplybecause,
theworldismovinglittleforAfrica,butthentheworldmovefortheothercountries.Theworld
isgraduallytryingtomakemoreandmoremovesbutitsstillnotenough.Theyshouldthink
aboutthesolutionforfuturetoo.
AIDSisthebiggestprobleminAfrica.OneofthereasonwhyAfricacantgetenoughtreatment
isthatAfricaisapoorcountry.Thatswhytherichcountriesnoticedthatandpeoplelikethe
governmentstartedtalkingabouttheproblems,butstilltheywontdonateanymoneyoreither
trytohelpalot.Theyjustwanttheircountrysafeandnice.AndalsoevensomeoftheAfrican
leadersaretryingtoignorethesituation.

13.7millionAfricanshavediedofAIDS(FerialHaffajee,NewInternationalistp.1).
Manyofthevictimsarethechildren(FerialHaffajee,NewInternationalistp.1).Usuallythe

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kidsbornwithAIDSdonotlivelong,butinCotlandssanctuaryinJohannesburg,SouthAfrica,
therewasakidwholivedwithAIDSuntilhewassevenyearsold.Heactuallylivedmuchlonger
thanmostbabiesbornwithAIDS."Hewaseverybody'sspecialchild,"(JackieSchoeman,the
directorofCotlands).ThewestpartofAfricahasdrugsthatcanpreventAIDS/HIVpassedtothe
babiesfrommothersthatarepregnantatleast50%ofcases.However,Cotlandscannotmanage
thedrugsforthosepeople.Theonlythingthattheycandoforthebabiesaretogivethem
medicineformaketheirdeathlesspainful."Weaverageonedeathaweek,butlastweekwehad
three:oneonFriday,oneonSaturdayandoneonSunday."(JackieSchoeman)Thiswasan
examplefromoneplaceinAfricabutthisisthesituationinalotofplaceinAfrica.
ThedeathrateforadultsandchildrendyingfromAIDSinAfricaisestimated1.5million
(1.41.7million)people.In2013were22%fewerpeopledyingthanin2009and35%fewer
thanwhenthenumberpeakedin2005(WorldHealthOrganizationp.1).Childrenyounger
thanfifteenyearsoldin2013had31%fewerdeathsfromAidscomparedwith2009and40%
fewerpeoplediedcomparedwith2005.(WorldHealthOrganizationp.1)Thisputstheworld
ontracktoexceedthetargetofreducingthenumberofpeopledyingfromHIVrelatedcausesby
25%by2015(comparedwitha2009baseline)*(WorldHealthOrganizationp.1).Globally,ART
programmesavertedanestimated7.6million[6.98.4million]deathsbetween1995and2013
(WorldHealthOrganizationp.1).In2013,anestimated24.7millionpeoplewerelivingwith
HIV,accountingfor71%oftheglobaltotal.Inthesameyear,therewereanestimated1.5
millionnewHIVinfectionsand1.1millionAIDSrelateddeaths.(HIVandAIDSinsubSaharan
Africaregionaloverviewp.1)ThisisallbasicallythedeathrateinAfricacausedjustbythe
Aids.

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AIDSisaseriousprobleminAfrica.Itsbeenseriousproblemforalmost100years.Andthisis
notonlyabigissueinAfrica,thisisglobalissue.Buthoweveronlyfewpeopleintheworldis
movingforAfricaandstillitsnotenough.Everyday,peoplearedyingandsufferingfromAIDS.
AlsoAfricanpeopleshouldthinkmoreaboutthemselves.TheleaderinAfricaistryingtoignore
therealitysopeopleinAfricaarestillhavingsexeventhoughtheyhaveAIDS.Theresultofthis
ismakingthebabiessuffer,makingthemliveharderthanitshouldbe.PeopleinAfricaneedto
livewiththefeelingofdeathcomingafterthem.Theseproblemneedstogetconsideredvery
seriouslyanddealwithitproperly.
Between1999and2000,morepeoplediedofAIDSinAfricathaninallthewarsonthe
continent(UNSecretaryGeneral,KofiAnnan).2000beganwith24millionAfricansinfected
withthevirus.Intheabsenceofamedicalmiracle,nearlyallwilldiebefore2010.Eachday,
6,000AfricansdiefromAIDS.Eachday,anadditional11,000areinfected(LesterR.Brown,
HIVEpidemicRestructuringAfricasPopulation).Around2008therewereabout33.4million
livingwithHIV,2.7millionlivingwithnewinfectionsofHIV,2milliondeathsfromAIDS,
roughly7outof10deathsfor2008wereinSubSaharanAfrica.Aplacethatalsohasmorethan
twothirdsofadultsHIVcasesandmorethan90%ofnewHIVinfectionsamongchildren.
AIDScanaffectdifferentkindsofsocietyindifferentways.Forexample,childrenmayhaveto
takecareofparentsthatisill.Wayadultteachthekidsaboutsexcanledtotheseproblemtoo.
Othertime,childrencanbecomeorphansasparentsdiefromAIDS.Ifthekidsgrandparentsor
relativesarewillingtohelpthemtheyarelucky.Alotoftherelativesareeitherdiedornot

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willingtohelpthem.Bigexamplesoftheimpactsarelikereducedlaborsupply,reducedlabor
productivity,andreducedexportsandincreasedimports.Thesecombinedimpactoftheseseveral
impactseffectstheperformanceofaneconomyintocomplicatedtasks.
AsIsaidbeforeoneofthebigissueisthatsomeoftheAfricanleadersaretryingto
ignoreanddoesnttrytomakeanactionforAIDS.AlsomanymajorAfricanpoliticalleader
havedeniedthatthelinkbetweenHIVandAIDSarentthere.AfricahadbeendeniedthatHIV
andAIDSareconnected.Theyweretryingtoignore.InKenya,safesexcommercialsare
banned.In2009,thePopeBenedict,onthetripinAfrica,bannedthecondoms.In2013the
Catholicchurchrenewedbanningofcondomsincatholicschools.Muslimleadersalsohave
takenasimilarthingin2008.Thesearejustfewexamples.Economicallythemostobvious
challengefortheAIDSpandemicisthelackofmoneyformedicalfacilitiesandtreatment
distributionindevelopingcountries.MedicalfacilitiesinmanyAfricancountriesarelacking.
Also,therearenotenoughhealthcareworkersavailable.Thisalsomeansthelackoftraining
available.InmanyAfricancountries,thereisnoformalhealthcarebaseatall.Manypeoplerely
onthingcalledfolkmedicinetotrytoheal,orthejustlivewithoutcaringaboutitatall.Also
theAfricanhealthcareindustryhasbeenstrugglingwithbraindrainsoitsreallyhardforthem
toconcentrateononedisease.
Somepeoplearetryingtochangethesituationrightnowanditsnotonlynegativethings
happeningbutstillitsnotstillenough.Now2016therearealotofarticlesornewsaboutpeople
movingforAIDSandtheispositivethingsoitisreallygreat.Butstillalotofplacesareneeding
ourhelp.Theworldneedstothinkandtakeitseriously.ThereareextramorediseasesbutAIDS
arealreadyrankedin6thplaceandthatisprettyhighranking.AIDScanbepreventedjustby

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usingcondomandthatisreallyeasy.Thereisgoingtobealotofmoneymovingbutcondoms
arentexpensiveasdrugsormedicines,anditshouldbeeasyforpeopletoget.Itseasyfor
placeslikeJapan,AmericaandotherplacessoitshouldbeeasyforAfricanstogetittoo.AsI
saiditbeforeitshouldntbeignoredbytheworld.Thisisaworldlygloballyabigissue.

ThetreatmentforAIDSisnotprovidedenough,becauseotherrichcountriesdoesnottrytohelp
AfricaoreitherAfricaisjustignoringwhattheyshoulddo.Thesedaystherearealotofpeople
tryingtohelpanditisincreasing.Butstillalotofpeoplearedying.
ThereareHIVandAIDSpreventionprogrammesinAfrica.AlotofplacesinAfrica
havemadelargescalepreventionprogrammesinanefforttoreduceAIDSinfections.Thesedays
theuseofcondomsarerisingbuttherearestillcountriesthatactuallydoesnotallowtouseit
likeforexampleTheIvoryCoast,Niger,Senegal,andUganda.Thatswhyeventhoughsupply
ofcondomsincreasesyearandyear,itdoesntmeanthatitguaranteesthattheyaregoingtouse
it.Limitedinformation,education,beliefsandattitudestowardsHIVandAIDShaveallfoundto
workagainstcondomuses.ResearchinKenyaandZambiahasshownhowmarriageincreases
thefrequencyofsexualintercourseandhindersawoman'sabilitytonegotiatesafesexor
abstinence.Thisisparticularlyaproblemforyoungerwomenwhosehusbandstendtobeolder
andhaveahigherHIVprevalence.(AvertingHIVandAIDS).Alsowellknownwaygetting
AIDSaremothertochild.Actuallytheyarehavingprogressinthepreventionofmothertochild
transmission.In2013,over900,000pregnantwomenlivingwithHIVaccessedantiretroviral
treatment,equatingtoacoverageof68%.Infourcountries(Botswana,Namibia,SouthAfrica,

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Swaziland)morethan90%ofpregnantwomenwereaccessingART(AvertingHIVandAIDS).
However,thereisevidencethatprogressinthescalingupofARTforpregnantwomenis
slowing.37,000additionalpregnantwomenwerereachedbyPMTCT(Preventionof
mothertochildtransmission)programmesin2013comparedwith97,000inpreviousyears
(AvertingHIVandAIDS).Inmanycountries,thesehadbeendecreasingofpregnantwomen
gettingARTincludingBotswana,Chad,Ghana,Lesotho,SouthAfrica,Uganda,Zambiaand
Zimbabwe.
Followingthediscoverythatmalecircumcisioncouldreducetheriskofsexual
transmissionofHIVfromfemalestomalesby60%,in2007,theWorldHealthOrganisation
(WHO)andUNAIDSrecommendedvoluntarymedicalmalecircumcision(VMMC)asakey
componentofHIVpreventionincountrieswithageneralisedepidemic(AvertingHIVand
AIDS).Studiesfrom20092011indicatedthatcircumcising80%ofmenin14prioritycountries
inEasternandSouthernAfricain5yearscouldavert3.4millionnewinfectionsoverthenext15
yearsandsave$16.5billionintreatmentcosts.(AvertingHIVandAIDS).Asaresult,theWHO
andUNAIDSlaunchedtheJointStrategicActionFrameworkforacceleratingthescaleupof
VMMCforHIVpreventioninSouthernandEasternAfrica,callingfor80%coverageofadult
malecircumcisionby2016(AvertingHIVandAIDS).By2013,5.8millionoftheestimated20
millionmenneededtoachieve80%coveragehadbeenreachedbyVMMCprogrammes,
requiringafurtherscaleupofexistingefforts(AvertingHIVandAIDS).
TheHIVandAIDSfundingsituationisincreasinggradually.Theregionwiththehighest
HIVandAIDSdifficulty,itexplainsforthelargestrateofglobalHIVandAIDSspendingswere
47%in2012.DevelopedcountrieshaveincreasedthefundingsupportforHIVandAIDSin

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Africatheseyears,mostlythroughtheGlobalFund.InAfrica,2.3millionpeoplegotARTfrom
GlobalFundsupportedprogrammesin2010.TheGlobalFundfinances100%ofantiretroviral
treatmentprogrammesinanumberofcountriesinsubSaharanAfricaincludingEthiopia,
Ghana,Guinea,Malawi,NamibiaandTanzania(AvertingHIVandAIDS).In2010,80%of
fundingforHIVprogrammesinsubSaharanAfricawasfromdonorgovernments(Averting
HIVandAIDS).Bycomparison,SouthAfrica,whichhasthemostpeoplelivingwithHIV
anywhereintheworld,mostlyfundsitsownHIVresponse,whileKenya,TogoandRwanda
havealldoubledtheirHIVspendinginthepastfewyears(AvertingHIVandAIDS).The
implementationoflargerateHIVandAIDStreatmentandpreventionprogrammesdependupon
countryshealth,education,andbasetobedevelopedsufficiently.InmanycountriesinAfrica,
thesenarrowresourceswereexpandedprevioustotheHIVandAIDSepidemic,andhavecame
underincreasingpressureastheepidemichasgrown.

Thewholeworldknowsthattheyneedtodosomethingaboutthisproblem.Andactually
theyaretryingbutnotworkinghowtheywantittobe.Theyareactuallyplanningoutalotof
thingstodonowandalsointhefuture.Thethingisbothdomesticgovernmentsandthe
internationalcommunityneedstocooperatetomaketheplanshappen.HIVandAIDS
preventioncampaignshavebeensuccessfulinAfrica,andthisneedstoberepeatedmore.Alsoit
wasscaledupespeciallyinreturntothe2013WorldHealthOrganisationguidelines.

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TherearealotofinitiativesandcampaignswhichhasbeengoingontohelpHIVand
AIDStonotspreadanymore.OneofthecampaignistheABCcampaign,whichshowedagood
result.Ofcourseeventhoughitshowsagoodresultdoesntmeanthattherearentanyissues.
Thepopulationgrewalotandtheteenagersdidnotgetenougheducationaboutthesediseases.
Addressingthisproblem,innovativeapproachesbecomenecessary.TheBillandMelindaGates
FoundationaswellastheHenryJ.KaiserfamilyfundedLoveLifewebsitein1999.LoveLife
websitewasanonlineresourceaboutsexualhealthandrelationshipforteenagers.TheBotswana
MinistryofEducationstartedtointroducenewtechnologyforHIV/AIDSeducationinschoolsin
aneffort,toguideinregardtopreventativemeasuresin2011.Thetechnology,called
TeachAIDS,comingfromStanfordUniversity,wasusedinalleducationalinstitutions,
targetinglearnersfrom624yearsoldnationwide(Medwiser).
So,thisshowshowmucheffortpeoplearemakingforAIDS.Itcanseemlikejustalittle
thingormaybesomepeoplemightthinkitsprettymuchnothing,butforonething,itsbetter
thandoinganything.Atleasttheyaretryingtodosomething.Itsshowingusthatthese
preventionandotherthingsaregraduallyincreasing.LikeyouwillseeUNICEFswebsiteand
therearealotofpeoplevolunteeringandaskingformorehelplikemoney.Ittellsusthatthere
arealotofpeoplecaringaboutAIDSandtryinghard.Thisshouldcontinuemoreandmore.
Andwe,liketheworldneedstothinkandcareaboutitmorenowandinthefuturetoo.

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