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| HIV/AIDS |
| The Social and Economic Impact of an Epidemic |
| Posted on November 18, 2003 |
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A commercial sex worker infected with HIV/AIDS lies unattended in the red light district of Mumbai, India.
Credit: WHO/P. Virot | •
Current statistics about the HIV/AIDS epidemic, as devastating as they are, do not reveal the broader social and economic impact of the disease.
Social stigma and discrimination prevent many people from seeking diagnosis or treatment. By 2010 in some countries, two-thirds of school
instructors will be replacements for teachers who have died of AIDS. The impact of HIV/AIDS on the education workforce means that improving
literacy rates will be harder and that achieving the Millennium Development Goal of universal primary enrollment by 2015 will be more difficult.
The human toll of the disease has already reduced the skilled workforce in other sectors, contributing to the loss of business revenues and impeding
government efforts to improve life chances. As a result, some countries hardest hit by HIV/AIDS could experience more than 20 percent loss in GDP by 2020.
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This Development Gateway Cross-Topic Special on the social and economic impact of HIV/AIDS coincides with World AIDS Day on December 1.
Topic page resources examine key indicators such as diminished workforce, reduced household income, strained government health budgets, and weakened
healthcare delivery systems. The disease's impact on vulnerable groups, including orphans, farmworkers, women, and youth, are highlighted. Efforts by
NGOs and other organizations to battle the epidemic through communications and the arts, ICT, education and cultural awareness programs are explored.
Salvator Niyonzima, UNAIDS Advisor for the Greater Involvement of People Living with or affected by HIV and AIDS (GIPA), defines HIV-related stigma
and its manifestations, and proposes actions that can be taken to address it.
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| HIV/AIDS |
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Measuring the social and economic impact of HIV/AIDS.
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| Food Security |
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Namibia's rural labour force is the worst-hit by HIV/AIDS in Sub-Saharan Africa. More | |
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| Gender & Development |
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A high correlation exists between gender-based violence and HIV/AIDS in the developing world where infected women now count more than half.More | |
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| Youth for Development |
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Youth-for-youth peer programs exchange HIV/AIDS information in the developing world, where most new cases occur in youth ages 15-24.
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| Culture & Development |
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The expressive arts of theater, music and storytelling help reach targeted HIV/AIDS audiences in the developing world.
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| Indigenous People |
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An Australian NGO develops a cultural awareness package to fight AIDS in its aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander communities.
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| Non-Governmental Organizations |
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Strong NGOs are a key to successful HIV/AIDS response.
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| Capacity Development for MDG |
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HIV/AIDS is reversing gains for universal education while the need for education becomes more critical for HIV prevention.More | |
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| ICT for Development |
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With over 42 million people worldwide living with HIV/AIDS, ICT is a powerful tool in preventing the spread of the epidemic and mitigating its impact.
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| Innovations for Development |
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Two innovative case studies in South Africa find new ways to fight HIV/AIDS. More | |
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| Afghanistan Reconstruction |
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Social repression and cultural taboos pose problems for aid workers seeking to promote HIV/AIDS awareness and collect data regarding the prevalence of the epidemic.
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| Iraq: Relief & Recovery |
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New studies warn that an HIV/AIDS crisis may loom in Iraq as the country's traditional social controls collapse.More | |
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| Georg Kell |
Salvator Niyonzima is currently working for the UNAIDS Secretariat in Geneva where he is Advisor for the
Greater Involvement of People Living with or affected by HIV and AIDS (GIPA), a function within the Social Mobilization and Information Department.
Originally trained as a teacher in his native Burundi where he was Chief of Cabinet in the Ministry of Finance, he was a peer counselor with
Burundi's National Support Association for Persons Living with HIV/AIDS prior to joining UNAIDS.
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