AIDS in Africa. A global responsibility

The global response to the AIDS epidemic has often been marked by ignorance, fear, shame, and complacency, resulting in a spiraling epidemic in Africa and elsewhere. However, when leaders have confronted the realities of HIV with candor and empathized with those stricken with AIDS, the results are encouraging. Because infectious diseases and their consequences do not respect political borders, HIV presents many challenges for both developing and industrialized nations. AIDS in Africa represents a global challenge and requires sustained political and monetary investments. In 1998, only $300 million in international assistance funds were available for combating HIV/AIDS. However, an estimated $1.6 billion to $2.6 billion annually may be needed to mount an effective response in sub-Saharan Africa alone. Those dollars equal less than $3.50 per person in this region, or less than a bottle of cold medicine one of us might purchase at a U.S. pharmacy. Failure to act aggressively now will cost the world economically and socially, and will result in the loss of millions of lives.