Even at cost the bill would be pounds 250 per head in a continent that spends just pounds 7 per capita on health care. Tackling poverty is essential in countries where immune systems are low because of malnutrition, the report says. The problem is compounded by International Monetary Fund austerity programmes. which have slashed spending on health and education and introduced charges to see doctors at levels which deter most people. If Britons were charged at the same proportion of average income we would pay pounds 160 a visit to see the doctor. The extra pounds 2.1bn needed to provide basic care is less than a quarter of the money the UK is currently spending on building the Eurofighter.
Aids creates a vicious circle in Africa.
Time spent tending victims should be spent tending fields. Many of the girls can only feed themselves by prostitution. Many of the boys end up living on the streets. All this is creating a time-bomb. In South Africa the number of orphans is expected to quadruple in 10 years.