Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1995. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Important note: Information in this article was accurate in 1995. The state of the art may have changed since the publication date.
Reuters NewMedia, Inc. - 26 Oct 1995
"The HIV/AIDS epidemic is at a more advanced stage in KwaZulu-Natal than in the rest of South Africa," the University of Natal survey said.
The six-month study was conducted by the Economic Research Unit (ERU) of the university to measure the impact of AIDS on the province with a population of 8.7 million.
"According to the projections we produced from the model there will be 920,000 HIV cases by 1996. Indeed the most recent HIV data for 1994 confirms that these projections are likely to be accurate," project leader Alan Whiteside told Reuters.
The latest AIDS survey published by the Department of Health found the national level of HIV infection to be 7.6 percent, or about three million of the 40 million population.
The figure doubles every 13 to 15 months, it said.
Official statistics showed a sharp increase in HIV infection in KwaZulu-Natal in 1994 with 14.35 percent of all women attending antenatal clinics infected, a sharp increase on the 9.6 percent the previous year.
The study anticipated an increase in deaths in the under five-year age group and in the 25- to 40-year age group and said poorer socio-economic groups, mainly blacks in townships, or impoverished rural villages would form the bulk of HIV cases.
"The KwaZulu-Natal region is particularly vulnerable to the epidemic due to numerous socio-economic and political factors, including ... conflict and poverty," the study added.
The region has some of the poorest parts of the country and a long history of political fighting between black political rivals which has displaced thousands of people.
Thousands of people live in squatter camps where medical facilities are scarce. Many men in rural areas work as migrant laborers in Johannesburg, making the spread of the deadly disease easier.
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