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This image shows the
number of African children orphaned by AIDS 2010 compared with 2000.
AIDS is a fairy recent phenomenon, one that is now known to
have started in
Africa after scientists identified a strain of Simian
Immunodeficiency Virus in Cameroon chimpanzee colonies
~ SIV
being a 'viral ancestor' of the HIV-1 virus that causes AIDS in
humans. AIDS was first transferred to humans in the 1930s with
HIV-2 being identified as migrating to humans in Guinea-Bissau
during the 1940s. At this stage AIDS was still a relatively unknown virus and even
by the 1960s only around 200 infections had been noted, though
possibly the figure was somewhat higher as medical staff were
not fully aware of its existence.
However in the 1970s, the virus entered the urban social network
after a solitary infected individual travelled down the River
Congo from Cameroon and arrived at the Democratic Republic of
Congo's capital city, Kinshasa.
A tragedy of epidemic proportions was about to begin; an
epidemic that was sweep across Africa claiming the lives of
the equivalent of the entire combined populations of London
and New York by 2007. Children in Africa become infected with AIDS for very much
the same reasons as all children throughout the world, however
certain cultural issues and practices in Africa has made the
spread more endemic. Firstly, a lack of education and awareness
amongst parents and children is a major contributory factor,
particularly street children who are out of education and often
sexually exploited by infected adults.
Although direct sexual contact is not a major factor in AIDS transmission, in certain countries such as Lesotho 30% of boys report that they have had sex before the age of 15yrs compared with 6% in developed countries. Such sex is often with older, unprotected partners. By far, most children in Africa with AIDS are infected through their mother either during pregnancy or by breastfeeding. The table below gives facts and figures for children living with AIDS for each country in Africa.
| Country | Child population (0 -17yrs) | Number of children (0-14yrs) infected | Orphaned by AIDS (0-17yrs) |
| Algeria | 11,712,000 | No data | No data |
| Angola | 9,405.000 | 17,000 | 50,000 |
| Benin | 4,309,000 | 5,400 | 29,000 |
| Botswana | 778,000 | 15,000 | 95,000 |
| Burkina Faso | 8,043,000 | 10,000 | 100,000 |
| Burundi | 3,733,000 | 15,000 | 120,000 |
| Cameroon | 9,142,000 | 45,000 | 300,000 |
| Cape Verde | 221,000 | No data | No data |
| Central African Republic | 2,061,000 | 14,000 | 72,000 |
| Chad | 5,724,000 | 19,000 | 85,000 |
| Comoros | 293,000 | No data | No data |
| Congo, DR | 39,000,000 | 43,000 | 320,000 |
| Congo, Republic | 1,716,000 | 6,600 | 69,000 |
| Côte d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast) | 9,768,000 | 52,000 | 420,000 |
| Djibouti | 371,000 | 1,100 | 5,000 |
| Egypt | 31,527,000 | No data | No data |
| Equatorial Guinea | 317,000 | No data | 5,000 |
| Eritrea | 2,368,000 | 3,100 | 18,000 |
| Ethiopia | 41,018,000 | 92,000 | 650,000 |
| Gabon | 633,000 | 2,300 | 18,000 |
| Gambia | 811,000 | No data | 3,000 |
| Ghana | 10.585,000 | 17,000 | 160,000 |
| Guinea | 4,872,000 | 6,300 | 25,000 |
| Guinea-Bissau | 769,000 | 1,500 | 6,000 |
| Kenya | 19,182,000 | No data | No data |
| Lesotho | 954,000 | 12,000 | 110,000 |
| Liberia | 1,878,000 | 3,100 | 15,000 |
| Libya | 2,220,000 | No data | No data |
| Madagascar | 9,571,000 | No data | 3,000 |
| Malawi | 7,900,000 | 91,000 | 550,000 |
| Mali | 6,507,000 | 9,400 | 44,000 |
| Mauritania | 1,489,000 | No data | 3,000 |
| Mauritius | 361,000 | No data | No data |
| Morocco | 11,030,000 | No data | No data |
| Mozambique | 11,315,000 | 100,000 | 400,000 |
| Namibia | 946,000 | 14,000 | 66,000 |
| Niger | 8,429,000 | 3,200 | 25,000 |
| Nigeria | 74,519,000 | 220,000 | 1,200.000 |
| Rwanda | 4,757,000 | 19,000 | 220,000 |
| Sao Tome and Principe | 77,000 | No data | No data |
| Senegal | 6,198,000 | 3,100 | 8,000 |
| Seychelles | 43,000 | No data | No data |
| Sierra Leone | 2,753,000 | 4,000 | 16,000 |
| Somalia | 4,562,000 | No data | 9,000 |
| South Africa | 18,286,000 | 280,000 | 1,400,000 |
| Sudan | 19,098,000 | 25,000 | No data |
| Swaziland | 561,000 | 15,000 | 56,000 |
| Tanzania | 21,777,000 | 140,000 | 970,000 |
| Togo | 3,032,000 | 10,000 | 68,000 |
| Tunisia | 3,004,000 | No data | No data |
| Uganda | 17,728,000 | 130,000 | 1,200,000 |
| Western Sahara | No data | No data | No data |
| Zambia | 6,686,000 | 95,000 | 600,000 |
| Zimbabwe |
6.024,000 |
120,000 | 1,000,000 |
Sponsor a child listings by country together with details of children's lives there.
Information about the growing crisis
of street children in Africa escaping poverty and violence.
All the latest news about children in Africa, their circumstances, children's right developments and legal issues.
Find out more about the lives and challenges of children in Africa in a series of articles and videos.
Sponsor an African child for less than the cost of a daily newspaper with our child sponsor programs.
Mainly African, we also extend our listings to other children in need who live in Haiti, Yemen and Gaza.
