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Millions more AIDS orphans by 2010 - UNICEF

    JOHANNESBURG

    Sub-Saharan Africa will have 20 million HIV/AIDS orphans by 2010, a senior UN official has warned.

    Per Engebak, the UN Children's Fund (UNICEF) regional director for eastern and southern Africa, said there would be four countries in Southern Africa where the orphan generation would represent in excess of 30 percent of the child population.

    "These are dramatic figures. While indeed the situation is serious today, the worst is yet to come. No matter how successful we are in rolling out antiretroviral programmes so that we can prolong the life of parents, we will still have a considerable orphaned population in years to come," Engebak said.

    According to the African Orphans Generation Report, sub-Saharan Africa had 11 million orphans in 2003.

    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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