Washington, 14 March ( EFE).- The Bank world ( BM) urged today countries and African Nations donor to improve the management of funds for the fight against AIDS on the continent, because the economic crisis puts at risk the fight to stabilize the disease.
“A growing global economy volatility is causing problems in the maintenance and increase of treatment programmes for AIDS in low-income countries”, says the report released today by the World Bank.
The Bank cited as an example to Uganda, whose programmes to combat the disease depend on an 85 per cent of external financial aid, which is why, despite having lower rates of AIDS in South Africa, running the risk of a spike.
The report recalls that, after decades of increase in funds, which have stabilized the disease has enabled millions of people can receive treatments to avoid death, the costs are increasing and the poor state of public finances in southern Africa raises the danger.
In Botswana, where a quarter of the population between 15 and 49 years is a carrier of the HIV, the report notes that the fiscal cost of AIDS programmes will increase up to 3.5 per cent of the gross domestic product (GDP) in 2016.
That cost could grow at a rate of 12 per cent in 2021, if they are still falling mining revenues and rising cost of health care programs.
Nevertheless, the World Bank recalled that since 1996 funds globally to contain the AIDS epidemic have increased from $ 260 billion to 15,900 million 2009 USD.
According to the report, public investment to combat the epidemic alone could be reduced if improving fiscal planning and containing the spread of the disease. EFE
