AEGiS-BKREV: Confronting AIDS: Public Priorities in a Global Epidemic

(BKREV) Confronting AIDS: Public Priorities in a Global Epidemic

Oxford University Press, 200 Madison Ave., New York, NY 10016. 353p., illus., bibliog. (A World Bank Policy Research Report). ISBN 0-19-521117-0. $30.00.
by the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development/The World Bank. 1997.

It is extremely important that developing countries not ignore the HIV/AIDS epidemic. "According to UNAIDS, about 1.5 million people died from AIDS in 1996. Each day about 8,500 people, including 1,000 children, become newly infected. About 90 percent of these infections occur in developing countries, where the disease is likely to exacerbate poverty and inequality." This book is a report of World Bank researchers who were supported by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and the European Commission. "This book provides information and analysis to help policy makers, development specialists, public health experts, and others who shape the public response to HIV/AIDS to design an effective strategy for confronting the epidemic." It draws on three areas of knowledge: epidemiology of HIV, public health insights into disease control, and public economics.

There 6 easily read chapters that contain much support through illustrations, graphs, tables and charts. These chapters cover: "AIDS: A Challenge for Government," "Strategic Lessons from the Epidemiology of HIV," "Efficient and Equitable Strategies for Preventing HIB/AIDS," "Coping with the Impact of AIDS," "Working Together to Confront HIV/AIDS," and "Lessons from the Past, Opportunities for the Future." One extremely useful appendix contains much statistical information, including HIV infection rates by subpopulation, indicators of socioeconomic development and government AIDS policies by stage of the epidemic, and socially marketed condom sales in developing countries, 1991-96.

James D. Wolfensohn, President of the World Bank, Joao de Deus Pinheiro, member of the European Commission, and Peter Piot, Executive Director of the Joint United Nations Programme on AIDS provide an excellent plea to all developing countries: "The world can overcome HIV. Given the necessary information, means, and a supportive community, individuals can and do alter their behavior to reduce the risk that they will contract and spread HIV. But there are certain actions that only governments can take, and political commitment has often been lacking. The costs of inaction are potentially enormous. Policymakers who demonstrate commitment, by working in creative ways with people most severely affected by HIV/AIDS, have a unique opportunity to contain a global epidemic and save millions of lives."

A highly recommended book for all academic and research libraries as well as the libraries that support the governments throughout the world.

Keywords: Prevention; Government Policy; World Strategy)

Copyright (c) 1999 Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. Book reviews may be reprinted or redistributed for the noncommercial purpose of scientific or educational advancement granted by Sections 107 and 108 of the Copyright Revision Act of 1976. For other reprinting, redistribution, or translation, address requests to H. Robert Malinowsky, University of Illinois at Chicago Library, PO Box 8198, Chicago, IL 60680 or electronically to hrm@uic.edu.
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Copyright © 1999 - The University of Illinois at Chicago. All materials in the journal are subject to copyright by the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois and may be reprinted or redistributed for the noncommercial purpose of scientific or educational advancement granted by Sections 107 and 108 of the Copyright Revision Act of 1976. For other reprinting, redistribution, or translation, address requests to H. Robert Malinowsky, University of Illinois at Chicago Library, PO Box 8198, Chicago, IL 60680 or electronically to hrm@uic.edu.

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