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CNN Live Saturday

World Prepares for U.N. AIDS Conference

Aired June 23, 2001 - 12:10   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
DONNA KELLEY, CNN ANCHOR: People around the world are preparing for next week's U.N. AIDS conference. For some, the epidemic has taken a devastating toll. In Africa for example, AIDS is affecting far more than health. It's taking an economic toll on the continent. For more on this, we're joined by Hakan Bjorkman from New York. He is with the United Nations Development Program and a senior advisor on HIV and AIDS.

Mr. Bjorkman, thanks for coming to talk with us.

HAKAN BJORKMAN, U.N. DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM: Thank you.

KELLEY: Where is the economic impact the worst?

BJORKMAN: Well, it's the worst in the southern African region, Eastern Africa as well, where some of these countries about -- well, over 20 percent of adult people are living with HIV.

KELLEY: Well, that's what I wanted to check with you, to see if -- to confirm for us it looks like from a wire report that I saw about a fourth of South Africa's population is infected with HIV?

BJORKMAN: That's correct. And in Botswana, it's even worse. It's nearly 40 percent of adult people who are living with HIV.

KELLEY: And when we talk about that, I think that it's -- maybe sometimes people forget how this can tumble down hill, when you have parents who pass away, to leave orphans and education. I want to hit on a couple of points with you. Tell us how the children, how it affects them.

BJORKMAN: Well, this is absolutely devastating. And you're completely right. The unique devastation of HIV/AIDS is that it affects people or kills people in the most productive and young age group. So this decimates family. Families lose the breadwinners. Children lose their parents or are left by themselves to fend for themselves, maybe with the older generations still alive.

KELLEY: And when they're orphans, then they say, too, that they not only have to fight economically, but then they can't be in school?

BJORKMAN: That's correct. In some countries, about half of the children who become AIDS orphans drop out of school in order to work, and you know, concentrate on trying to survive. Now African communities are quite resilient. And villages, communities do take care of their orphans. But at a certain point, that resilience, it breaks down.

KELLEY: What about treatment there? What's being done currently and what do you see long term that can or needs to be done?

BJORKMAN: Well, I would say in the overall response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic is still prevention, education, trying to prevent new infections from occurring. But at the same time, trying to gradually expand access to treatment is very important. Currently, maybe you know, about less than 1 percent of people living with HIV in Africa have access to treatment. And that's just not good enough, obviously.

KELLEY: Yeah, that's terrible. And then, so these folks are just left to die because they don't get treatment.

BJORKMAN: That's exactly it. It's really devastating.

KELLEY: So what can be done? I mean, I know that Secretary of State Powell is going to be attending the conference. And he made a trip recently to Africa and he is pushing for more aid, as is Richard Holbrook, who's the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations. He's with a business group, Global Business Council, and he also is trying to get something accomplished on this.

BJORKMAN: Yes. No absolutely, the U.S. government is really showing great intellectual, moral, and financial leadership in the fight against AIDS in Africa and elsewhere. And that's very good news. Now a lot needs to be done. And as I said, prevention is the top priority, as well as treatment, but also helping these countries address the impact of this epidemic on their economies and on the levels of poverty and education systems, health systems. So it's really very big challenge right now.

KELLEY: And is that what the conference is going to concentrate on, the three day conference?

BJORKMAN: Exactly. This conference will set out commitments and prime bound targets that governments will commit to, to implement. And this will provide us with a road map. And also, this conference will be an occasion where rich countries can pledge support. You know, the U.N. has calculated that 7 to 10 billion dollars that's required for fighting AIDS worldwide. That might sound like a lot of money, but it's about 2 percent of what the world spends on the Y2K bug, also a virus, but of course, machines, not humans.

KELLEY: Hakan Bjorkman, who's a senior advisor on HIV/AIDS, the United Nations Development Program. We're glad you could join us and we'll continue to watch and see what happens with the conference and check back.

BJORKMAN: Yes, thank you very much.

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