33 million people are infected with HIV worldwide. But what does that tell us? The world is big. 67% of those infected lives in Sub-Saharan Africa. Still, Africa is a very large continent. 35% of all those infected live in southern Africa and within South Africa, the KwaZulu Natal province has the highest prevalence of HIV infection; 39% of women who attend an antenatal clinic are HIV positive.
Knowing the HIV epidemic is fundamental when setting up interventions and my opening statement clearly shows that generalisation are not very useful or …

Despite an increase in intergenerational sex amongst female teenagers, despite an increase in the number of multiple partners amongst men age 15-24, despite a decrease in HIV prevention knowledge, the third South African National HIV survey conducted in 2008 showed a promising decline in the number of HIV infections amongst the 15-24 years old.
“HIV prevalence among adults aged 15-49 has declined between 2002 and 2008 in the Western Cape, Gauteng, Northern Cape and the Free State, with the largest decline of 7.9 percentage points in the Western Cape.”
This may well …

The BBC reports on South African Children as young as 15 shooting up with grounded HIV anti-retrovirals sometimes mixed with painkillers and marijuana.
“I couldn’t believe it. I was shocked at first, these were school boys in their school uniforms,” documentary-maker Tooli Nhlapo told the BBC World Service’s Outlook programme.
“They take a pill and grind it, until it is a powder. Some also mix it with painkillers and others mix it with marijuana,” said Ms Nhlapo. “They showed me how they roll it and smoke it.”
The pills are either bought …

During the opening ceremony of the 2008 AIDS Vaccine Conference in Cape Town, Barbara Hogan who was recently appointed Minister of Health following the demise of Dr Beetroot, said “We know that HIV causes Aids”.
It was a “breath of fresh air” reacted Alan Berstein, executive director of the Global HIV Vaccine Enterprise.
Unfortunately I missed this historic moment but the Cape Times reports that Mrs Hogan is confident that a reform of the health system is possible and will scale up treatment to prevent mother-to-child transmission. She also challenged scientists and researchers to …

 My first impressions, gathered on the transfer from airport to town centre, were that Cape Town would be a place of contrasts. The airport was common, but as soon as the minivan was out of the compound, the first scenery we went through was of a township. To have seen pictures and TV footages of a township and to actually drive by one is something very different. The cold improbability of corrugated iron housing growing in the middle of a rich and warm landscape sharply cut the romantic dream of …