AIDS in the Commonwealth
At the end of 2005, 38.6 million [35.9-44.3 million] people were living with HIV. Two-thirds of them are Commonwealth citizens. 4.1 million people became newly infected and 2.8 million lost their lives to AIDS.
Two-Thirds of people living with AIDS are Commonwealth citizens.
- 60% of them are women.
- 60% are young people.
- Half of the children in the Commonwealth may never grow up beyond their fifth birthday.
- A quarter of our workforce could die in the next decade.
- Twelve million children in Africa are without parents because of HIV/AIDS and many are without basic care or education.
8 out of 19 Commonwealth countries in sub-Saharan Africa have HIV/AIDS adult prevalence rates above 10%. These countries are:
- Swaziland 33.4%
- Botswana 24.1%
- Lesotho 23.2%
- Namibia 19.6
- South Africa 18.8%
- Zambia 17.0%
- Mozambique 16.1%
- Malawi 14.1%
The Secretariat's HIV/AIDS strategy is focused on:
- Advocacy
- Developing a gender sensitive approach to HIV/AIDS
- Prevention
- Mitigating the impact of HIV/AIDS on the public sector human resources.
1. HIV/AIDS Advocacy
The Commonwealth Secretariat works together with governments to raise awareness about the AIDS pandemic and encourage increased action.
The Secretary General and other Senior Level Officials of the Secretariat promote the issue of HIV/AIDS in their contacts with Commonwealth Leaders, Heads of International Organisations and Ministers of State.
Our advocacy role is also aimed at actively involving men in HIV/AIDS prevention and care.
2. Developing a gender approach to HIV/AIDS
The Health Section assists member governments strengthen their HIV/AIDS programmes by adopting a multi-sectoral approach and tackling the problem through a "gender lens". This is done by review of country policies, strategic plans and programmes to ensure that they are gender sensitive and reflect the lack of power and representation that many women face.
The Health Section collaborates with the Gender Section to provide training to HIV/AIDS project managers in the Commonwealth through the International Institute on Gender and HIV/AIDS.
3. Prevention:
The Health Section provides technical support to the Commonwealth Youth Programme to promote the Youth Ambassadors for Positive Living Programme and to increase the capacity of Ministries of Youth to plan and implement HIV/AIDS programmes.
4. Mitigating impact of HIV/AIDS on the public sector
The Health Section works with the Commonwealth Secretariat's Governance and Institutional Development Division (GIDD) to develop appropriate toolkits to assist Commonwealth Governments to address impact of HIV/AIDS on public sector human resources.
Our Key Partners
Partners are mainly at regional and country levels. They provide logistics and technical support. Main partners include:
- National AIDS Commissions
- Ministries of Health
- UNAIDS
- WHO Country Offices
Source: United Nations Statistics Division, 2005
