Speech by H.E. Girma W/Giorgis

President of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia

Mr. Chairman
Honorable Commissioners,
Distinguished Guests,
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Welcome to Ethiopia

Mr. Chairman,

I am very grateful to each and every one of you for accepting the Secretary General's invitation to become a champion against this deadly scourge.

I cannot understate the terrible nature of the crisis that is enveloping our societies. Ten years ago, no-one could have imagined that HIV prevalence would have reached the shocking levels that it has in parts of our continent.

In the absence of massively expanded prevention, care and treatment efforts, the AIDS death toll on our continent is expected to continue rising. This means that the worst of the epidemic impact on our societies and economies will be felt by future generations. As bad as it is today, the reality is that it is getting worse.

For the current generation, AIDS is primarily killing those in their productive and procreative years -with profound implications for population configuration and social structures.

The most direct impact is being felt at the family level, where the death of a breadwinner means the disruption of the family as an economic unit, and even its disintegration. The capacity of communities to pool resources in times of hardship dwindles with the collapse of families. Shocks that would otherwise have been absorbed with little impact get magnified and become unmanageable, worsening poverty and leaving those alive ill-prepared to sustain the community.

In the long-term, the loss of income-earning adults translates to more than economic hardship for those who survive. Along with the death of productive adults comes the loss of intergenerational knowledge, which will be felt in lower productivity and security over the years, with the deskilling of workers across all sectors having its effects felt acutely by coming generations.

Thought AIDS has been killing the poor disproportionately, those who are skilled and economically well off have not been spared either. Skilled workers, who are the backbone of society are dying. We are losing teachers, health workers, soldiers, policemen and civil servants.

Our cemeteries are filled beyond capacity. Parents are dying from HIV/AIDS or burying their children; a generation of fathers and mothers is being lost leaving the grandparents to grieve and raising the next generation.

The resulting social decay and community breakdown is threatening the socio- economic fabric of our continent, particularly in southern and eastern Africa. Public services in the most affected countries are facing widespread attrition of trained staff.

The death of water technicians and extension workers has high cost for rural communities, and usually means the stagnation of already struggling systems. Deterioration and collapse of public service systems are sure to reverse any gains made in the fight against poverty, making poverty worse and creating fertile ground for the further spread of the disease.

In places where the infection rates are high, hospital beds have over 100% occupancy rates and health workers are working under adverse conditions in, high-risk environments. The health sector lacks the capacity to manage the epidemic.

An overwhelmed health sector and a struggling education system do not bode well for the future. They contain the seeds of macroeconomic instability, since they result in the erosion of human capital. Meaningful economic growth is unthinkable without significant gains in health and literacy, which are under direct attack by HIV/AIDS.

The private sector is not spared the pandemic as skilled workers who are difficult to replace die early, costing firms dearly in profits, human resources and enterprise capital. As the environment in which expectations about the future is formed deteriorates, investment looks less attractive and skilled workers find it more attractive to flee to stronger economies, exacerbating the process of brain drain out of Africa.

I would like to welcome all of you to this very important session of CHGA Interactive on the critical issues of rural livelihoods and food security. I urge you to see this meeting as a challenge and an opportunity to contribute to Africa's fight against the HIV/AIDS Pandemic.

Thank you very much!

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