There are many ways in which children’s lives are adversely affected by HIV. Some say that every child in the world is in some way affected, others talk particularly about orphans or about children who are HIV+. Most of the ways in which HIV directly affects a child come in the form of problems for the child, the family or for the community.
Problems for the Family Many children are affected by AIDS in their family with an estimated 38.6 million adults living with HIV around the world, it is understandable that a very large number of children will know a family member who is HIV+ or who has died from AIDS. These children may themselves undergo the discrimination that comes from being related with HIV. They may also be in the position of having to care for a sick parent or relative, and may have had to quit school, if they have access to it, to become the principle wage-earner for the family.
When adults fall sick, food still needs to be provided and the burden of earning money generally falls on the oldest child. AIDS has now killed one or both parents of an estimated 12 million children in sub-Saharan Africa. These AIDS orphans are sometimes left in the care of other adults in the family i. e. uncles, aunts, or grandparents. In some situations, nevertheless, many family members may have died, or there may not be an extended family. In these cases, orphans may be left without any adult support, and sometimes have younger brothers or sisters who they have to support.
AIDS is creating an increasing number of child-headed households. Such children are obviously extremely weak to exploitation, which can also make them even more susceptible to HIV infection. Problems for the Community In many countries, children who are left impoverished will be cared for by the community. In greatly effected areas, neighbors will be aware of the existence of child-headed households, and may help out where they can, providing some assistance with food and clothing.
This type of community support is the final safety-net for many children, and it may not hold if many people in the community die. A large number of deaths in the community affect all children in that community, even those who are not orphans. Other affects of many AIDS deaths are that schools and medical services will become unavailable as nurses and teachers die. This might seem like an unlikely scenario however it is one that is happening in many high-prevalence African countries, where many villages have houses left empty by the effects of AIDS.