HIV in Africa
Still from the film The Starfish Principle
South Africa has the highest number of people living with HIV in the world, an estimated 5.7 million infected people, with 1,000 AIDS related deaths each day. Over the country as a whole, the official rate of HIV infection is around 11%.5
These rates vary from area to area, and are highest in Kwazulu Natal, where HIVEX has carried out its trials. Young adults are most affected. A South African Department of Health Study showed that in 2007 in Kwazulu Natal 37.4% of pregnant women attending ant-natal clinics were living with HIV in 2007 6. We are told of high schools and colleges in which infection rates hit 80%, of towns where it is 60%+, but these figures are anecdotal - many people do not want to be tested. In rural KwaZulu Natal, people often do not perceive anti-retroviral drugs as a solution. Perhaps because they seem hard to get - people need to have papers, be tested, go for counselling, go onto a waiting list if they are seen as ill enough to merit drugs - and 20% of those on a waiting list die before they receive any drugs. Stigma is a huge disincentive - people do not want to be seen queuing at an HIV clinic to get drugs. Malnutrition does not help. An ill person may not be able to work and their wellbeing and that of all those they support suffers. It is hard for South Africa to come to terms with the scale of the problem, and it took a long time for affordable drugs to reach South Africa. Drugs can be difficult to get and the kind of medical treatment which is desirable to fight a mutating virus is often not available. Politicians are recognising the need for action and education is increasing. Use of condoms is encouraged, with South Africa requesting 1 billion condoms before the World Cup. The rate of new infections is gradually dropping.
It is estimated that there are 1,400,000 AIDS orphans in South Africa. Many of these children live on the streets. Many are themselves infected. As South Africa got ready for the World Cup, the streets were “cleaned” – the street people’s possessions confiscated and the street people often jailed for short periods to get them off the streets. But where do they go? This is putting huge strain on the institutions which are helping.
The Starfish Principle, a documetary film made by Michaela O'Driscoll, one of the founders of the charity Lifestride Ltd, shows some of the positive steps being taken by ordinary people in South Africa today. You can get a copy by emailing us at info@lifestride.org, cost £8 GBP.
A preview of the film can be seen here: http://www.thestarfishprinciple.net
The HIVEX treatment can be used for large numbers of people, anywhere where there is no electrical interference. It does not need highly skilled medical staff to administer it. In is a one-off 10 day treatment. We want to bring it to full use in Africa, to communities where a new kind of treatment is needed, in addition to existing treatments..