As World AIDS Day was recognized on Wednesday, Save the Children released a comprehensive list of facts and myths about AIDS/HIV and its growing impact on children.
Myth #1: HIV/AIDS affects adults, not children.
Reality: Last year, almost 500,000 children under age 15 died from AIDS.
In addition, an estimated 15 million children have lost one or both parents to AIDS, and that number is expected to climb to 25 million by the end of the decade. As the number of young girls and women living with HIV/AIDS increases, so too does the risk of mother-to-child transmission of HIV, which can occur during pregnancy, childbirth or breastfeeding. Simple, inexpensive measures conducted as a woman enters labor, and within the first 72 hours of a baby’s life, can reduce transmission of HIV from mother-to-child by more than 50 percent.
Myth #2: Children orphaned by AIDS live in orphanages.
Reality: Only a small minority of these children lives in orphanages, and orphanages cannot solve the rapidly growing problem. In many countries, there is a strong culture and tradition of family and community. Most of the children orphaned by AIDS in Africa remain in their villages among family and friends who do their best to support and care for them. But these children are often discriminated against and have to fend for themselves. As parents get sick and die of AIDS, family burdens shift to children. Children – particularly girls – are often forced to leave school to earn money, procure food, and care for the ill or their siblings.
Myth #3: The effect of the crisis on children is confined to Africa.
Reality: While the large majority of the children orphaned and affected by AIDS live in Africa – nearly 13 million – the crisis has also destabilized and further impoverished families in Asia and the Caribbean, leaving children without the care and support they need to survive and thrive. Greater attention must also be given to these regions now, not later.
Myth #4: Only high-tech and high-cost solutions can make a difference
Reality: The solutions themselves are not complex or expensive, but the number of children in need is great and growing. By working with communities, local governments and nongovernmental organizations, we can support these children by helping them stay in school and learn income-earning skills. We also can ensure they get adequate protection, food and health care, and support to cope with the grief and trauma of losing one or both parents to AIDS.
Myth #5: There is little that America can do to help children
Reality: When Congress appropriated $2.4 billion to combat HIV/AIDS in the developing world in FY2004, approximately ten percent of these funds were dedicated to helping children orphaned and made vulnerable by HIV/AIDS. Children are already benefiting from these efforts. For example, in Mozambique, Save the Children is using a portion of these funds to provide community-based child care for children age 3 to 5 who have been orphaned or affected by AIDS. At these centers, affected children can learn basic literacy skills, receive a nutritious meal, and play together with other children without feeling stigmatized. But, the amount of funding appropriated for these child-focused programs is not equal to the needs of children affected by HIV/AIDS, which are growing dramatically.
Save the Children (www.savethechildren.org) is the leading independent humanitarian organization that works to create real and lasting change for children in need in the United States and around the world. The organization is fighting HIV/AIDS on two fronts: helping communities provide care and support for the children, families and communities affected by HIV/AIDS; and preventing new HIV infections, especially among youth and others at high risk of infection. These programs are being carried out in Bangladesh, Ethiopia, the Republic of Georgia, Malawi, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nepal, Uganda and Vietnam. Save the Children is a member of the International Save the Children Alliance, which is a worldwide network of 27 independent Save the Children organizations working in more than 100 countries to ensure the well-being and protect the rights of children everywhere.