Some of the report’s troubling findings include:

• 64%, or 11.9million, of the country’s 18.6million children live in poverty. Many of them are Aids orphans – about 5.5million people have HIV/Aids in South Africa, more than in any other country

• Only 54% of the HIV-positive children who should be on antiretroviral treatment are receiving it;

• More than 270 babies and their mothers die after birth on average a day, mainly due to HIV/Aids, and the maternal mortality rate has increased by 80% since 1990;

• 582000 children who should be attending high school are not – 28% don’t have the money for fees and 15% because “education is useless”;

• Of 56500 children who were victims of violent crime in 2009-2010, 27417 were raped or molested. Of those, 29% were aged between 0 and 10.

Read the full article below:

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The Times: Young,hungry,helpless

http://www.timeslive.co.za/local/article986417.ece/Young-hungry-helpless

UN,USA

The family has done everything they can do to save their little girl’s life. Right now they have left for Boston, USA to get help from surgical doctors who will perform further surgeries.

She has had emergency surgery to lighten the pressure of the tumor on her windpipe but traveling abroad for further surgery that includes reconstruction of her spine has thrown her family into a financial crisis.

“At Massachusetts General Hospital Natalie will undergo pre-operative Proton Beam Therapy (PBT) – a specialised form of radiation. Surgery will follow some time in April, and once Natalie is rested and has recovered from the operation, she will have further PBT.”

The surgery and PBT treatment is very costly and their hospital insurance only covers essential expenses in South Africa.

Both surgery and the treatment will cost approximately R 2-3m and the family cannot afford such amount “So any support, however big or small, is deeply appreciated.”

Let’s open our hearts and offer a gift of life to our little friend.
To support Natalie go to: http://www.nataliescircleoflove.org/make-a-donation

More people seek help from the clinics.Photo: US Army Afrika,Flickr

Denial and a lack of  education are some of the factors that increase a person’s chance of contracting diseases such as HIV/AIDS.

In this same regard, people stray from health clinics as they fear the stigma that may be associated with their health concerns.  Behaving this way causes people to miss the opportunity to get information about HIV/AIDS and how support groups can change their behaviour.

To further investigate this topic, DKT International, a well-known organisation, conducted door-to door surveys in Khayelitsha to find out why people refused to visit clinics. Some of the responses included: a lack of privacy and confidentiality, and people felt uncomfortable being treated by a person of the opposite sex.

Focusing on similar components, a partnership between De Beers Fund and Humana People to People was formed and aimed to erase a mentality of fear and distrust.  Their efforts linked health facilities and people in the Limpopo province.

These two organisations created the initiative, “Connecting People to the Clinics,” a programme that encourages people to get involved in health services.

 According to ngopulse.org, the programme mobilised the community through door-to door campaigns, showing locals the importance of going to clinics for screenings, as well as for patients to get  sufficient ARV’s.

Through this campaign, people’s attitudes and behaviours have changed as they take control of their lives and see the importance of getting help.

Matshidiso Ramokgadi, project leader, was quoted as saying, “a definite impact has been noted, especially in the clinics where before the nurses would see 5 people a day and now the numbers have risen to 35 patients a day.”

Educational programmes are very important to our community. Counselling and adequate education serve as a source of information and change people’s mindsets on life-threatening issues.

With age, many women dream of retiring and being taken care of by their loved ones, but the challenges they often face make that dream a far-fetched reality.

Due to poverty and illnesses, these women, ‘super grannies,’ not only end up caring for their sick children, but also become primary care givers to their orphaned grand and great grand-children.While the AIDS epidemic continues to plague the area, youth, in particular, are being affected by the deadly disease, leaving their children behind.

To support these families, a group of inspirational grandmothers from Khayelitsha formed, Grandmothers Against Poverty and Aids (GAPA), an organization that offers financial and psychological support to affected families.

According to the site, the project recognises the challenges faced by these grannies. It also celebrates their ”unity” and strength in their communities, as both carers and activists.

Through this project, thousands of grannies have benefited from skills that include parenting, first-aid, and learning income generating activities such as vegetable gardening and handcrafts. The work by these grannies eradicates harsh realities of poverty to orphans and brightens their future.

As well, they share educational messages by singing and dancing at bus stops and handing out condoms to passengers.

Their hard work, dedication, and perseverance has paid off as they are now receiving international recognition. A photo exhibition about the day in the life of these grannies will be installed in Cape Town in May 2011and Washington DC. USA from July to September 2011.

It is said that the exhibition will be the premise of a book about these grannie’s lives, coordinated by South African Journalist Eric Miller and award-winning South African Journalist Jo-Anne Smetherham.

Show your support! To learn more about the project, click here.

Photo: GAPA

Everyone has a responsibility to support people living with HIV and AIDS. Photo: Development Works via Flickr

Currently there are more than 33 million people in the world living with HIV and AIDS, according to avert.org. This website also reports that 605,480 people died of HIV and AIDS related causes in South Africa in 2006 (although this is sometimes difficult to calculate). Many people have relatives, friends, and partners who have died of HIV and AIDS.

In the past few years a lot has been done by governments, health organisations and researchers to develop medication and preventative measures for this incurable disease. But this is also a disease that requires personal responsibility from those affected by it.

Recently it was revealed at the International Aids Conference in Vienna that researchers had developed a vaginal gel that decreases the probability of women acquiring HIV/AIDS by 39 percent and genital herpes by 51 percent if applied before and after sex, the Wall Street Journal reports.  It is estimated that the gel, in the next 10 years, could prevent half a million infections in South Africa alone.

But, as with other preventative measures like the use of condoms and treatment measures such as the use of anti-retroviral medication, responsibility lies with the individual to actually make use thereof and, especially in the case of ARVs, to keep on using it.

The use of microbicides in a vaginal gel has proven effective in the fight against HIV. Photo: Development Works via Flickr

We all have a role to play in supporting those living with HIV and AIDS, as the stigmatisation of the disease is causing real damage. Stigma keeps people from getting tested for HIV and collecting their ARVs. They fear that people will reject them if they know they are HIV positive. Stigma even keeps some people from using a condom as they are scared that their partner will think they are using it because they have HIV.

It is also really disheartening to hear that people are now stealing and smoking ARVs and marijuana as a mixture called whoonga. Some people are too afraid to collect their ARVs from clinics as they might be mugged on their way home.

Luckily there are also many individuals that are supporting people living with HIV and AIDS. Especially women often act as care givers to these people. They should truly be commended for the incredible work they are doing.

Recognition is also necessary for the South Africans that are protecting themselves when they have intimate relationships with their partners and for those who are affected, but taking treatment appropriately. We are proud of you! This shows that if South Africans work together, we can conquer!