Nursery World - In crisis

The HIV/Aids pandemic in Africa has left a generation of orphans fending for themselves. Professor Helen Penn recalls what she witnessed on an EU project in Swaziland Fourteen million children worldwide are estimated to be HIV/AIDS orphans.

Fourteen million children worldwide are estimated to be HIV/AIDS orphans.

They have lost one or both parents to HIV/AIDS. Many of those children themselves are suffering from the virus.

In some countries in southern Africa, almost 40 per cent of all pregnant women test positive for HIV/AIDS. This means that, without treatment, within five years or so they will die painful deaths. Their children are also likely to be infected. The scale and devastation of the HIV/AIDS pandemic beggars the imagination - it is far worse than the virulent plague that wiped out half the population of Europe in the Middle Ages.

Register now to continue reading

Thank you for visiting Nursery World and making use of our archive of more than 35,000 expert features, subject guides, case studies and policy updates. Why not register today and enjoy the following great benefits:

What's included