Caring for our children

Abstract

Children are severely affected by the global HIV-epidemic, nowhere more so than in sub-Saharan Africa, the region that carries the brunt of the HIV disease burden. HIV has been responsible for more than 25 million deaths to date (WHO 2006) and it is estimated that 38.6 million people are currently living with HIV (UNAIDS 2006), the majority living in sub-Saharan Africa. The HIV prevalence has been declining in a number of African countries, but the most southern parts of the continent (South Africa in particular) are still faced with an escalating epidemic (UNAIDS 2006).