Africa, especially sub-Saharan Africa, has been affected by HIV and AIDS more than any other part of the world. Infection levels are the highest. For example, approximately 38.8% of adults (ages 15-49) in Swaziland are living with HIV/AIDS. The access to health care for people who are HIV positive is still limited. There is little money to treat each case.

The stigma of being HIV positive is great and many don’t want anyone to know if they are seeking care for AIDS. The social and economic safety nets to help families cope with the impact of the epidemic are badly frayed. This is due in part to the financial and infrastructure situations in many of the developing countries and in part due to the epidemic itself.

It is estimated that 25.8 million people living in sub-Saharan Africa have HIV or AIDS. This area is now home to 64% of the people worldwide who are infected with HIV. Many have already died. Most of the 25.8 million people will die in the next 10 years, leaving behind shattered families and crippled prospects for development. Here the virus is mostly spread through sex between men and women.

Lack of proper medical equipment is a factor in the spread of the virus. Doctors and nurses lack the gloves, needles, and other sanitary equipment to keep themselves and others safe from spreading the virus. Some places do not have the equipment to conduct testing to determine if someone is HIV positive. HIV can spread among family members when wounds in the infected person are not properly covered.

Women are heavily affected in Africa. Approximately 77% of HIV positive women in the world live in Sub-Saharan Africa. Women represent more than half (57%) of all adults living with HIV/AIDS. The epidemic has multiple effects on women. These include added responsibilities of caring for sick relatives, loss of property when they become widowed and/or infected, and potential violence when their HIV status is discovered.

90% of children living with HIV live in Africa. Yet only 10% of the world’s population lives in Africa south of the Sahara.

If current infection rates continue and there is no large-scale treatment program, up to 60% of today’s 15-year-olds will not reach their 60th birthday.  In the Sub-Saharan countries with the highest HIV prevalence rates, the average life expectancy of a person born between 1995 and 2000 is now 49 years. This is 13 years lower than in the absence of AIDS. People living with HIV in Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe who do not receive antiretroviral programs face the potential of the predicted average life expectancy rate dropping to below 35 years of age.

AIDS affected households are more likely to suffer severe poverty than non-affected households. In South Africa and Zambia, AIDS affected households–most of them already poor–had monthly incomes drop by 66-80% when coping with an AIDS related sickness.

The AIDS epidemic is attacking the agricultural base of many countries. This base is important for the well-being and self-sufficiency in many developing countries. It is estimated that AIDS will have claimed the lives of 20% or more of the agricultural workers in southern Africa by 2020.

AIDS is likely to reduce the growth rate of the labor force, as it often strikes the working-age population. The International Labor Organization projects that the labor force in 34 countries will be between 5% and 35% smaller by 2020 because of AIDS.

Education suffers as AIDS claims the lives of teachers and causes serious teacher shortages. Children, especially girls, from AIDS affected families are often withdrawn from school. If their parents are ill, there is a loss of income in the family and they cannot afford to send the children to school. A child may also be asked to care for sick relatives and look after the home.

It is estimated that between 19% and 53% of all government health employee deaths are caused by AIDS. Countries are unable to replace enough health sector workers to keep up with the epidemic.