Showing posts from category HIV/AIDS.
-
The New York Times Sees “The Shape of Things to Come” in Very Young Populations
›April 11, 2007 // By Gib ClarkeReporting on Population Action International’s latest report, The Shape of Things to Come, The New York Times’ Celia W. Dugger calls the link between young age structures and conflict “no simple coincidence,” observing that Iraq, Afghanistan, Sudan, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo all suffer from bad governance, violent conflict, and young populations. Retired Army Major General William L. Nash sets the scene with military efficiency:You’ve got a lot of young men. You’ve got a lot of poverty. You’ve got a lot of bad governance, and often you’ve got greed with extractive industries. You put all that together, and you’ve got the makings of trouble.
Shape concludes that youthful populations (countries where up to two-thirds of the population is below 30 years old) are most likely to present hurdles to political stability, governance, and, in some cases, economic development. For example, between 1970 and 1999, 80 percent of civil conflicts (those with 25 deaths or more) occurred in countries where 60 percent of the population was under 30 years old. In contrast, countries with an older age structure had only a 5 percent chance of civil conflict in the 1990s. Increased access to family planning and reproductive health, as well as improved rights for women—legal, educational, and economic—can help countries avoid demographic problems, the report says.
While Dugger’s explanation of the link between youthful populations and conflict is strong and succinct, she does not delve into the nuances of demography that are not so simple, but yet just as illuminating. Shape also focuses on other countries along the “demographic transition”— a population’s shift from high to low rates of birth and death—including “youthful” South Korea, “mature” Germany, and “transitional” Mexico and Tunisia. Some countries are impossible to classify strictly by age structures, including the United Arab Emirates, where large numbers of young men are immigrating for work; and sub-Saharan Africa, where HIV/AIDS is killing adults and children alike.
This report, as well as the PAI’s 2003 The Security Demographic, was released in a political environment increasingly concerned with the negative economic consequences of low fertility—the “birth dearth”—in developed countries, which has led Russia, France, and Iran to offer financial rewards for women that have more children. In addition, other recent reports have focused on the “demographic dividend” that developing countries could harness by taking advantage of the ingenuity and additional labor of youthful age structures. Many developed countries, concerned about below-replacement fertility rates, are thus not noticing or remain unconcerned that the population of the developing world continues to grow—and some even consider family planning to have been “accomplished.”
Despite the shifting political landscape, the fundamental arguments for female empowerment and family planning remain the same. Provision of reproductive health information and access to family planning goods and services are development imperatives, and the only way to ensure that women and couples can choose the size of their families. Furthermore, lowering birth rates still has positive economic benefits. The NYT article, while limited in its focus, will help bolster support for such programs, because as PAI’s Tod J. Preston tells Dugger:The budget realities are such that unless you can show how your programs help achieve larger ends—security, development, poverty reduction, democracy—traditional rationales for humanitarian assistance aren’t enough.
-
African Diplomat Discusses Regionalism and AIDS
›March 12, 2007 // By Julie DohertyK.Y. Amoako, distinguished diplomat, former Wilson Center African Scholar, and former executive secretary of the United Nations Economic Commission for Africa, will discuss regionalism as a major movement in world politics—particularly in Africa—on the Wilson Center’s radio show Dialogue this week.
Drawing on his experience at the United Nations Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa (CHGA), Amoako will explore regionalism’s potential to accelerate progress and strengthen stability, as well as improve Africa’s campaign against HIV/AIDS.
Created in 2003 by then UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan, CHGA’s mandate was twofold: to clarify data on HIV/AIDS’s impact on state structures and economic development; and to assist governments in consolidating the design and implementation of policies and programs to help govern the epidemic. In the process, CHGA consulted more than 1,000 Africans. -
Dems, Bush Agree on Combating Pandemics
›February 6, 2007 // By Ken CristCongressional Democrats agreed last week to spend $4.5 billion in 2007 to combat AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis , signaling support of the Bush Administration’s earlier efforts to strengthen international programs aimed thwarting the diseases. New York Representative Nita M. Lowey said the joint support is a sign of the times:“We’re in a different world now…. This is the first time since Sept. 11 we’ve had a power split in Washington, and there’s a growing recognition among the public and policy makers that foreign assistance is critical to stability around the world.”
Under Bush’s leadership, aid has quietly risen to more than twice the level of any previous administration. The upward trend reflects Washington’s renewed commitment to stemming the spread of AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis, which continue to claim the lives of millions of people around the world each year. -
United States Funds Antiretrovirals for Vietnamese Military
›January 29, 2007 // By Alison WilliamsUnder an earmark in the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), free HIV/AIDS antiretroviral medication will be made available to military and civilians at a Vietnamese military hospital. The program, a collaboration of PEPFAR and the U.S. Department of Defense, will extend to other military hospitals in the future. Vietnam is one of 67 countries worldwide working to reduce the incidence of HIV/AIDS through involvement with militaries. -
Tackle Violence to Address AIDS, Say Experts
›January 25, 2007 // By Ken CristViolence against women was highlighted as a contributing factor to the spread of HIV/AIDS at the World Social Forum, taking place this week in Nairobi. Ludfine Anyango of Action Kenya-International argued that women still have little say in negotiating their sexual relationships, which increases their susceptibility to infection:“Many women cannot even choose when to have sex or not. Many cannot ask their husbands to use a condom because in addition to being thought as unfaithful, they fear being beaten. The woman then has no choice but to continue having unprotected sex with her spouse.”
AIDS activists are calling for new and strictly enforced laws aimed at protecting women from all forms of violence, particularly sexual violence.
