For Schools: Tackling the Issues, Aids

Of the thirty million people alive today with HIV (Human Immunodeficiency Virus) or AIDS (Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome), at least a third are young people aged 10-24 and over 90 percent live in developing countries. Two decades after the appearance of HIV, an estimated 11.7 million people have died of AIDS-related causes. The World Bank and other international organizations recognize AIDS as an international problem that must be tackled for the benefit of all people�rich and poor, young and old.

One of the ways the Bank fights AIDS is by helping people who are most likely to contract and spread the virus to protect themselves and others. The World Bank is also working with UNAIDS to inform the public, raise awareness, and take action against the spread of AIDS. Young people are at the forefront of the UNAIDS agenda as the 1998 theme is "Force for Change: World AIDS Campaign with Young People�. The decisions and choices young people make today will have a direct impact on the future of this disease.

Expanding the Response: HIV/AIDS and the World Bank
A main focus for this site is the effect that HIV/AIDS has on children�either the children whose parents die of the disease, or those who have it themselves. Here you will find information and data about children and AIDS along with links to news releases, speeches, and news stories about AIDS, and AIDS activities. The following portions of the website may be particularly useful:

World Bank and HIV Activities
Visit this web page to find out what the World Bank is doing to help countries to find economic, social, and cultural solutions to this devastating epidemic.

Why Invest in Young People?
A country's youth are its future. This website explores why investing in the next generation should be a primary concern of governments everywhere. The needs of young people are often recognized only when it is too late�when they become infected with HIV or other sexually transmitted diseases (STDs).

Children with AIDS
This short webpage gives you basic statistics on the number of children orphaned by AIDS.

AIDS Economics Home Page
This comprehensive website explores the economics of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment and the difficult question of how to allocate scarce public resources to best fight this epidemic. It contains general information about AIDS as well as useful tools for economic understanding of the HIV/AIDS epidemic, including news articles, data, research papers, and much more. The following information located on this site may be particularly useful:

Confronting AIDS: Public Priorities in a Global Epidemic
This rich website contains main findings, a table of contents, and relevant background materials, based on, or related to, the book Confronting AIDS: Public Priorities in a Global Epidemic. Ordering information and a brief summary of the book and are available. The following resources provide regional information as it pertains to Confronting AIDS: Public Priorities in a Global Epidemic.

Confronting AIDS in Latin America and the Caribbean

Confronting AIDS in Africa

Confronting AIDS in Asia

UNAIDS
Explore this website for a variety of rich resources, including a handy glossary that will help you learn more about HIV/AIDS and how you can protect yourself against it. Also, learn about how you can participate in the youth campaign against AIDS, "Force for Change: World AIDS Campaign with Young People". The following sites may be particularly useful:

Frequently Asked Questions
How does one contract HIV? How can I recognize if someone is infected with HIV? What should I do to protect myself from HIV? Access this webpage to find answers to these important questions and many others.

Learning and Teaching about AIDS at School
What are the challenges encountered in teaching AIDS Education in schools? Why is teaching about AIDS important? Explore this article to find out.

AIDS in Africa
This site contains HIV/AIDS profiles for each Sub-Saharan African country. You may also find the statistics and additional links particularly useful.

Data: AIDS

Explore these tables from World Development Indicators, 1999 to find data on AIDS for over 140 of the world's countries:

Around the World

Controlling AIDS in Burkino Faso
At the current rate of HIV prevalence in Burkina Faso, one out of every eight or nine citizens will be infected with the virus in just five years. What can the government do? Visit this webpage and find out.

Brazil AIDS Program Brings NGOs into Center Focus
Find out how the Brazilian government is harnessing the energy and expertise of the private sector to spread the word about AIDS and STD prevention.

Digging deeper

Tackling the Issues
The AIDS problem is closely associated with other issues that in their turn either reduce or increase the likelihood of escalation of AIDS. Explore issues like Health and Population among other issues to learn about the connections that interest you.