Botswana Aids Epidemic

Botswana has been badly affected by HIV/AIDS. Botswana aids epidemic information shows how it has been badly collapsed because of HIV. There were 300,000 adults living with HIV estimated in the year 2009. If we see the population of Botswana that is below two million, the epidemic has reached at its culmination. It has disturbed most part of the country. The HIV prevalence of the country is 24.8% among the 15-49 year olds. It is the second highest rate of prevalence after Swaziland in the world. The epidemic has shown devastating effects on the country.

The information about Botswana aids epidemic is given below

The country has seen serious economic implication because of HIV. The reason behind it is the loss of adults in their productive years. Many families have been pushed into poverty because of the loss of income and funerals. The economy has been shattered because of the loss of the workers and skills. Out of the sectors, agriculture and mining are the most affected areas. It has not only shattered the economy but also the children; 93,000 children have lost at least one parent to the outbreak of HIV according to the estimation in the country. The most striking thing is that the children are provided with education, but they cannot focus on education as they have to take care of their siblings or parents who are infected with HIV. Festus Mogae, the president of the Botswana, synopsized while addressing to the UN assembly in 2001 that we are threatened with extinction. People are dying in chillingly high numbers. It is a crisis of the first magnitude.

Botswana became an example to the other African countries as it started and provided antiretroviral drugs to the needy people in the country. The treatment program became successful and provided the treatment to the needy people. It is estimated that eighty percent of the infected people in the country are receiving the treatment. If the country wants to control HIV, it must find a way to stop the spread of HIV.

Government and international funding for AIDS in Botswana

In the year 2008, almost $340 million was spent on HIV/ AIDS response in Botswana. The Botswana national government furnished sixty-six percent of funding for HIV/AIDS programs that year, a significantly greater share than other Sub-Saharan African countries who depend chiefly on foreign countries. The most important initiatives supported by foreign donors are the BOTUSA project and African Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnerships (ACHAP). ACHAP is a public-private partnership that was established in 2000, between the Government of Botswana, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Merck Company Foundation. The Melinda Gates Foundation and The Bill and the Merck Company Foundation have given $106.5 million towards the project that is helping and supporting the Botswana's HIV/AIDS response.

In 1995, CDC (US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention) and Botswana government started a collaboration called BOTUSA. The intention behind the collaboration was to work on public health programs and research to fight with TB as well as HIV/AIDS. BOTUSA has developed significantly since 2000, and is now a part of the President's Emergency Plan for AIDS relief. PEPFAR donated $55 million to HIV/AIDS programmes in Botswana in Fiscal Year 2006 alone.

With aids from these and other donors- involving the global fund, the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation, Harvard School of Public Health and numerous faith-based and community-based organizations, Botswana has started one of the Africa's most comprehensive programs of HIV/AIDS treatment, care and prevention.

Botswana aids epidemic information exhibits how the country has been facing the devastating effects of AIDS epidemic. It would help you to learn about the situation of HIV in the country.