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AFRICA: AIDS in Africa has a 'woman's face,' Annan says

    JOHANNESBURG

    UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan on Tuesday said HIV/AIDS was spreading "dramatically and disproportionately" among women in Africa - "the very people poised to help prevent famine and promote development on the continent".

    Annan pointed to the impact of widespread famine in Africa and recalled the traditional role played by women in helping families to avert hunger.

    HIV/AIDS was now depriving African countries "of their capacity to resist famine, by weakening exactly those mechanisms that enable populations to fight back - the coping mechanisms provided by women," Annan said.

    In order to break this cycle, Annan called for a "comprehensive international effort" centred on women.

    "Today, AIDS has a woman's face," Annan added.

    This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions

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