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HIV/AIDS: A menace to children and young people
In Sub-Saharan Africa, 22 million people are infected with HIV/AIDS. Almost half of all sufferers of new HIV infections are young people aged between 15 and 24 years.
HIV infection and poverty are inextricably linked. In poor Sub-Saharan Africa, HIV/AIDS has become an epidemic that accounts for over two thirds of all carriers of the disease in the world.
Save the Children’s goal
Our goal is to eradicate poverty on the basis of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, so that children may get an education and contribute positively to their own and their country’s development.
Along with local partners, Save the Children is carrying out about 100 projects aimed at fighting poverty in Ethiopia, Uganda, Bangladesh and Sierra Leone.
In general, we try to incorporate the HIV/AIDS issue into all relevant development projects, though we also have specific HIV/AIDS projects.
We focus on:
- Prevention: campaigns, contraception, HIV testing, fight against stigmatisation of those infected, and counselling.
- Advocacy: concerning access to treatment.
- Care and support: for orphaned children and young people with HIV/AIDS.
By taking part, the children get their own say in the work, which is always carried out alongside local NGOs and other partners. |
