A combination of
government unrest, food shortages, AIDS, and the
millions of children left parentless due to the pandemic
could leave southern Africa in a cycle of poverty, a
senior United Nations envoy said Wednesday. The
Associated Foreign Press reports that Kofi Anan's
special envoy for humanitarian needs in southern Africa,
James Morris, said that the pandemic is hitting
countries such as Botswana, Swaziland, and South
Africa the hardest.
"Until the
HIV/AIDS pandemic is brought under control and orphans
have an environment in which they can put their lives back
together, southern Africa will continue to struggle to
make long-term development gains and break the poverty
cycle," Morris said. (The Advocate)