A Serious Post

I generally like to cut down on lengthy quotes, but I don't think I can paraphrase this any better. This is from a United Nations website on sub-Saharan Africa.

"Unfortunately, efforts to eradicate poverty, empower women, reduce child mortality and improve maternal health in the region continue to be severely undercut by the devastating AIDS pandemic and by massive human displacements in the wake of natural disasters, violent conflicts and debilitating political strife. In a region that is home to more than 60 per cent of the world's HIV-positive people, halting and reversing the spread of HIV, as well as addressing related issues of malaria and tuberculosis, must be among the highest priorities. Addressing the reproductive health needs of the millions of women and adolescents currently at risk for contracting the infection is critical to this effort. Two-thirds of those newly infected with HIV in the region are women. About 7 per cent of young women and 2.2 per cent of men aged 15-24 years in sub-Saharan Africa were living with HIV at the end of 2004."

Although I don't feel like I can say that all of this relates to the Meningitis epidemics, much of it could relate. Other diseases (AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis), also spread quickly through the region and infections like these could easily lead to weakened immune systems making people even more susceptible to other illnesses. "Human displacements" would logically lead to the spread of disease. Conflicts and political strife pull governmental focus away from protecting their citizens health and everyday needs.

I still need to know what the social and religious culture is like to know how that affects the spread of meningitis in the Meningitis Belt. I also would like to know more about living conditions.