HIV is an Economic Issue

It’s widely known that HIV is a significant health problem throughout Africa and that the disease affects the physical, mental, and emotional health of people living with HIV, as well as their family members. HIV also affects the economic well-being of individuals and families in two ways. First, people with HIV must endure living with a chronic illness, making many of them less physically able to do manual labor such as farm work, construction, or tending livestock. People taking medication for HIV are more likely to be physically strong, but they are still immuno-compromised, making them more likely to get sick with common, but potentially deadly, ailments like malaria, flu, respiratory infections, and gastrointestinal diseases. These illnesses are expensive to treat and require days or weeks away from work to recover. Second, people living with HIV often face discrimination from community members, minimizing their chances of being hired for work and hindering business opportunities for trade and access to markets. Discrimination also comes from family members. Many people living with HIV are not given a piece of land by their parents or are kicked out of the home by their partner, leaving them with nothing.

Many of the people Village Hopecore works with are affected by HIV. Several of our loan groups consist of people living with HIV, many of our members are caring for family members with HIV, and many of the families in our feeding program are caring for orphans whose parents died of AIDS. Witnessing the physical, emotional, and economic destruction that this disease causes the community is alarming and disheartening, but knowing that we can do something to alleviate the economic suffering provides a glimmer of hope in an otherwise frustrating situation. With anti-retroviral medications, people with HIV can live long and healthy lives. The strength and enthusiasm that people with HIV bring to their lives are inspiring. However, it is important to remember the additional burdens they face as they make their way out of poverty and contribute to the economic development of their nation.