A Rant

There is an article in today’s Guardian you shouldn’t bother to read because it just annoys me. Here is the headlines: ‘Experts want African aid funds channeled away from HIV. Focus on Aids, they say, has led to neglect of other fatal conditions killing young children.’

It goes on to explain how AIDS funds have been misused by corrupt leaders, channeled towards ineffective programs, etc. All of which is true – to a degree. It is not true that the focus on AIDS has ‘killed young children.’ In fact AIDS is the leading cause of child mortality in Southern Africa, so the focus on AIDS – most recently to reduce mother to child transmission of HIV- actually is saving millions of young lives.

The reason many fatal conditions, such as childhood diarrhea, continue to kill is that health systems in Africa are the pits. There are not enough doctors, nurses, hospital beds, medications, bandages, etc. One of the main reasons hospitals are in such a sorry state is that in the 1980s and 1990s the World Bank and IMF imposed policies on African nations that forced them to reduce social spending on health care. Now many of the same economists and policy makers are blaming the amount of funding allocated to AIDS (which they would love to decrease in line with their macroeconomic policies) for the results of their own destructive policies.

Stephen Lewis says it best at the IAS conference in Cape Town in June: “So when, as now, there’s a backlash against funding for AIDS, with mindless charges against AIDS exceptionalism, you should find a way, collectively, to shoot down the pinched bureaucrats and publicity-seeking academics who advocate exchanging the health of some for the health of others – who propose robbing Peter to pay Paul rather than arguing, in principled fashion, that money must be found for every imperative, including maternal and child health, and sexual and reproductive health, and environmental health as well as all the resources required to turn the tide of the AIDS pandemic.”

Summing-up South Africa

I write this as I’m also flying over the Mediterranean in the airplane. I’ve been traveling for 16 hours already (and have another four to go) so feel it’s about time I got around to writing a final South African blog. As I realize they’ve been few and far between, let me reflect on some ‘highlights’ of the last four months.

Memories from HEARD:
Becoming obsessed with AIDS exceptionalism until I just didn’t care anymore (ok I still do)
Having the chance to interview some real life heroes who fought for the right to AIDS treatment in South Africa
Continuing to care ‘too much’ about HIV and AIDS care and treatment
Evenings with colleagues at Yossis - where too many bottles of wine where consumed along with a few Turkish Tigers (a shot consisting of condensed milk and vodka – it sounds gross but tastes like caramel)

Memories from Durban
Rugby games!
A picnic in the Botanical gardens
Getting lost downtown and having the police officer to give me a lift to where I was going
Drinking wine on the beach under the full moon
The chocolate cake at Earth Mother (absolutely orgasmic and also vegan and gluten free)
The Goldfish Concert
Bunny Chows (a hollowed out half loaf of bread filled with curry – traditional fare in Durban)

Memories from my travels
Hiking in the Drakensberg

Dave's Backpakers
The masked ball birthday party in East London
Wine, cheese and a perfect sunset in Hilton
The Cape Winelands (I still don’t understand why I’m doing a Masters in Peace Studies when I could be studying wine-making in Stellenbosch)
The beach at Jeffery’s Bay

Some food for though presented at the AIDS Impacts Conference I attended in Botswana:
A new initiative aims to reduce HIV infections by 50% by 2015 – it’s called 50 by 15.
Despite the many challenges to HIV prevention, there is evidence of significant positive behavior change amongst 15 to 24 year olds in sub-Saharan Africa (i.e. more of them are waiting longer to have first sex and are using condoms more often)
1000 people in South Africa are still dying every day from AIDS
A recent survey in South Africa found that 1 in 20 men reported having raped a woman in the last year!
The cost of treatment in South Africa will peak at $41-58 billion, but should then start to decrease.
6 percent of all HIV infections in Kenya are from injection drug use
North American college students likely engage in the most high-risk sexual behavior of any group in the world; yet HIV infections are higher in sub-Saharan Africa because poor health and nutrition increases vulnerability to infection (ie AIDS in Africa has very little to do with sexual behavior and a whole lot to do with poor health and poverty).
A number of presentatiosn advocated approaches that target families instead of individuals
There was also much discussion about applying social protection policies as part of the AIDS response

Favorite South African Wines that I’ve tried:
Beyerskloof Pinotage
Boekenhoutskloof Chocolate Block (yes that’s it’s real name and it’s as good as it sounds)
Boland Kelder Cappuccino Pinotage (has a slight coffee flavor)
Bekenhoutsskloof (didn’t write down which type)
L’avenir Merlot
Anura Merlot and Maestro
Diemersfontein Pinotage (actually tastes like dark chocolate)

Of course, mostly I’ll remember the people. The very friendly and helpful folks at HEARD, the friends and ‘family’ I’ve reconnected with after 10 years, and the new friends I’ve made. Thank you for making these months so special. And thank you HEARD and Rotary for making it possible.

Stay tuned for thrilling updates on how I stress out in the final two months of dissertation writing…………….