South Africa

South Africa has successfully converted from rule under apartheid to a democracy. Yet millions of South Africans continue to live in poverty. The country has high levels of unemployment and low levels of literacy. Widespread HIV/AIDS intensify these problems.

South Africa carries the world’s largest number of people infected with HIV/AIDS. Almost one in five adults are infected with HIV and two thirds of all adult deaths are due to AIDS. The virus does not only impact the life of the infected person, but also the lives of their family, friends and the wider community.

The pandemic has lead to a significant number of orphans in need of care. In 2005, 2.5 million children had lost a parent due to the virus and by 2015 five million orphans are expected in the country if nothing is done to stem the rate of adult deaths.

General poverty prevents extended family taking orphaned relatives into their care. Most families find it impossible to extend their limited resources to care for the children of family members lost to the pandemic.

In these circumstances children are extremely vulnerable due to: the demands of caring for dying parents, the trauma associated with the loss of their parents, loss of their home and material security, lack of food security resulting in hunger and increased malnutrition, and loss of childhood as they are forced to take on adult roles providing and caring for younger siblings.

Orphaned children are more likely to miss out on formal education; around 68 per cent of orphaned children attend school compared to 84 per cent of children who are not orphaned. They are also more likely to fall victim to substance misuse, be involved in crime and are more vulnerable to abuse, sexual and economic exploitation.