“The reality of AIDS touches everyone in Zambia. In a country of about 10 million people, everyone has a family member, a relative or a friend that has been affected by this dreadful epidemic”. Zvondai Muchenje, 2005
Sub-Saharan Africa (Africa south of the Sahara) has been the worst hit area by the AIDS/HIV epidemic. Out of the 40 million people living with AIDS/HIV today, three quarters are living in sub-Saharan Africa; more than 17 million people in this region have died from the epidemic. Today, one in five adults in sub-Saharan Africa is HIV-infected and experts project that as many as 25 million children will be orphaned by AIDS by 2010.
The countries that are most affected by AIDS/HIV are also some of the poorest and most indebted countries in the world. Zambia is one of them.
More than 70% of the Zambian population lives in poverty and one in five adults is infected with AIDS/HIV. The country's debt exceeds US$ six billion, and Zambia's annual debt repayments are approximately US $377 million -- or 7.3% of the Gross Domestic Product. This amount is larger than what Zambia spends on Health and Education combined. In addition, AIDS/HIV related issues like the rising medical costs and a decline in worker productivity place an enormous strain on theZambian economy.
The average life expectancy in Zambia has dropped from 57 to 33 years. Almost half of the children under the age of five are stunted due to malnutrition, and 16% of all newborn children will die before they reach their fifth birthday. Zambia has the 13th highest mortality rate in the world for children under five.
Day by day, the number of the undernourished, inadequately educated, and traumatized young people continues to grow because of the AIDS/HIV epidemic. As a result, Zambia faces serious threats of social and economic instability. According to Stephen Lewis, United Nations Special Envoy for AIDS/HIV in Africa "whole societies could 'self-immolate' or disappear, if not more immediate help is provided."
Effective ways to mitigate the impact of AIDS/HIV on children, adults and families in Zambia must become a top priority of the government, non-governmental organizations, and other aid agencies working in Zambia.