Happy Birthday!As I was drinking my 3rd cup of coffee this morning I read this headline in The Times . . .
Life expectancy now 47.
It got my undivided attention because I was born in 1962 - You do the math.
The newspaper said "Aids makes SA 'like a war zone.'" Comparatively, the life expectancy in Afghanistan is 44.
In 1990 the life expectancy in RSA was 63 and in 2005 it was 51.
Thabo Mbeki's administration was blamed for the current trend.
Also, . . . TB deaths were up 335% from 1997-2005. The "cure rate" for TB in most of RSA is 60% where the world cure rate is 85%. Kwa Zulu Natal has a cure rate of only 40%.
From 200-2007, of the more than 4,000 mothers who died while pregnant, 46% were HIV+, 12.5% were negative and 41% were not tested. That percentage is terrifying!
The health minister responded to the question "Is it reversible?" by saying certainly!
Won't you join me in praying that God would be gracious and merciful and enable this to happen for the glory of His name.
No comments:
Post a Comment