All About AIDS
People newly infected with HIV in 2002: 5 million •AIDS deaths in 2002: 3 million...that's over 8,000 deaths per day •Estimated number of people living with HIV/AIDS at the end of 2002: 42 million •Total of AIDS deaths at the end of 2002: 28.1 million •Total number of AIDS orphans: 13.2 million
Stigma and discrimination are major obstacles to effective HIV/AIDS prevention, HIV stigma and fear of discrimination prevents people living with HIV from acknowledging their HIV status publicly. People with, or suspected of having, HIV may be turned away from health care services, denied housing and employment, shunned by their friends and colleagues, turned down for insurance coverage or refused entry into foreign countries. In some cases, they may be evicted from home by their families, divorced by their spouses, and suffer physical violence or even murder. The stigma attached to HIV/AIDS may extend into the next generation, placing an emotional burden on children who may also be trying to cope with death of their parents from AIDS.
With its focus on stigma and discrimination, the World AIDS Campaign will encourage people to break the silence and the barriers to effective HIV/AIDS prevention and care. Only by confronting stigma and discrimination will the fight against HIV/AIDS be won.
People newly infected with HIV in 2002: 5.3 million... just under 15,000 cases per day. AIDS deaths in 2002: 3 million...that's over 8,000 deaths per day. Estimated number of people living with HIV/AIDS at the end of 2002: 42 million. Total of AIDS deaths at the end of 2002: 28.1 million. Total number of AIDS orphans: 13.2 million Worldwide, and in 2002 alone, AIDS claimed 3 million people last year. That's over 8,000 people every day. But the story does not end there: just under 14,000 new cases of HIV infections occur every single day.
95% of all AIDS cases occur in the world's poorest countries. In several southern African countries, at least one in five adults is HIV positive. In 2000, the HIV prevalence rate among pregnant women in South Africa rose to its highest level ever: 24.5% bringing to 4.7 million the estimated total number of South Africans living with the virus.
That's a terrifying thought. And it's the reality that millions of people in developing countries are living with HIV and AIDS as you read this: communities devastated, teachers and doctors dying every day, people's futures shattered, because they can't afford the drug treatments that are helping people living with HIV and AIDS in richer countries like ours.
Information from www.worldaidsday.org
