Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1999. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
The Associated Press - July 9, 1999
The drop in life expectancy is in line with many of the countries in southern Africa, where the AIDS epidemic is the fastest growing in the world.
The government estimates 3.6 million South Africans in a population of 42 million are infected with the HIV virus, with about one-quarter of adults infected in some areas.
AIDS is killing so many young people that it is driving down the overall average life expectancy in the country.
"Over the next three years, the annual death toll could be 250,000, leaving behind almost 600,000 orphans," the department said, adding that the loss of productive workers could reduce the country's economic growth rate by about 2 percent.
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