Public service overwhelmed by HIV/AIDS

The HIV/AIDS pandemic is threatening to overwhelm South Africa's civil service, but government departments have been slow in implementing measures to tackle the problem, the Public Service Commission (PSC) has said. At the recent presentation of its "State of the Public Service" report to the media in parliament, the commission warned that the disease was eroding the public service workforce. Mpume Sikhosana, the PSC director-general, said although there was a comprehensive public service HIV/AIDS policy, the way in which departments applied it was inconsistent. Sikhosana was quoted by the South African Press Association as saying: "Very few departments have adopted this policy. Our challenge in the next year is to ensure that departments implement [it]."