Kelly, Michael J.

Reference is increasingly being made to the feminisation of AIDS or to the female face of HIV and AIDS.

HIV/AIDS confronts the world and all who are committed to ECD with the challenges of: Preventing the transmission of HIV from parent to child; Paying great attention to the well-being of the parent-child pair; Responding to the needs of HIV infected children for treatment and care; Responding to

Increasing the salience of schooling in countering the AIDS epidemic suggests the need to confront many of the challenges posed by current education and school systems.

In March 2003, personnel from education ministries in the four countries in the UNESCO-Nairobi cluster grouping (Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and Uganda) met for the first cluster consultation on HIV, AIDS and education.

This paper sets out to demonstrate that clear links exist between HIV/AIDS education, both inside and outside the education system, and levels of awareness and knowledge about HIV/AIDS and associated risk behaviour.

Institutions of higher education throughout Africa face a major and, in many instances, an escalating threat from HIV/AIDS.

Presentation at the Strengthening Education Sector Responses to HIV/AIDS session organised by CIDA, PCD, The World Bank, UNESCO and UNICEF at the XV International AIDS Conference, 11-16 July 2004, Bangkok, Thailand.

Age-related data regularly show AIDS cases being at their lowest for boys and girls between the ages of 5 and 14. The low occurrence of AIDS among those aged 5-14 has led to children in this age range being regarded as constituting a "window of hope".

HIV/AIDS is the most devastating disease the world has ever encountered. Although present on every continent, it is not a democratic disease but one that shows a special penchant for the the most vulnerable members of society - women, the poor, and the young.

This paper examines ways in which education can contribute to reducing the likelihood of HIV transmission.