A few of these children are taken in by charitable institutions, others by family members or neighbors. Some simply live on their own as best they can. They are often exploited as a cheap labor source and are at extraordinary risk of physical and sexual abuse. Too many end up on the streets where casual sex becomes a way of life and prostitution a way to survive. Governments forced to spend more and more trying to control AIDS see death rates rise from other diseases that are left unchecked as funds are shifted.
Children drop out of school to help care for dying parents and never return.
Decades of painfully slow economic progress is being rolled back by a disease that robs nations not only of the energy of workers, but of skills that might have been passed on to others, and of a generation of children who will never have the chance to learn. But this is not just an Africa problem. Trends in infection rates indicate that AIDS deaths in Asia will mirror those of Africa unless drastic actions are taken soon. India already has more HIV-infected persons than any other country an estimated FIVE million, and that is expected to double every 14 months. All of South East Asia seems similarly threatened and China may be as well.