Katie+Smith

Number of orphans due to AIDS, alive in 2007 ||
 * ~ This week, I've done some reasearch on HIV orphans...
 * South Africa || 1,400,000 ||
 * Uganda || 1,200,000 ||
 * Nigeria || 1,200,000 ||
 * Zimbabwe || 1,000,000 ||
 * Tanzania || 970,000 ||
 * Ethiopia || 650,000 ||
 * Zambia || 600,000 ||
 * Malawi || 560,000 ||
 * Côte d'Ivoire || 420,000 ||


 * ~ AIDS orphans as a percentage of all orphans, 2005 ||
 * Zimbabwe || 77% ||
 * Botswana || 76% ||
 * Swaziland || 66% ||
 * Lesotho || 64% ||
 * Malawi || 57% ||
 * Zambia || 57% ||
 * South Africa || 49% ||
 * Kenya || 46% ||
 * Uganda || 45% ||

Children with AIDS are less likely to be addopted, and there-fore do not recieve and education so they cannot get a job and break the poverty cycle. (Info from [])

Children whose parents are living with HIV often experience many negative changes in their lives and can start to suffer neglect, including emotional neglect, long before they are orphaned. Eventually, they suffer the death of their parent(s) and the emotional trauma that results. They may then have to adjust to a new situation, with little or no support, and may suffer exploitation and abuse. In one study carried out in rural Uganda, high levels of psychological distress were found in children who had been orphaned by AIDS. Anxiety, depression and anger were more found to be more common among AIDS orphans than other children. 12% of AIDS orphans affirmed that they wished they were dead, compared to 3% of other children interviewed. These psychological problems can become more severe if a child is forced to separate from their siblings upon becoming orphaned. In some regions this occurs regularly: a survey in Zambia showed that 56% of orphaned children no longer lived with all of their siblings.

There are expected to be 143,000,000 orphans in the world. My country, Guatemala, contains 370,000 of that total umber of orphans. Many of the orphans live on the streets and rummage through rubbish to find the smallest morsel of food. The main causes for orphans in my country are: Civil war, Genocide, and HIV AIDS. Many children are turned to prostitution just to earn some money. Children become addicted to drugs, and sometimes alchahol.

I have reasearched some more quotes, maybe these would be helpful...

"The greatest destroyer of peace toay is abortion. Often, people are not concerened with the millions killed/ orphaned by the deliberate decision of their mother." //Mother Theresa of calcutta// When there is not love for a child to remember, Then there is nothing for the child to remember except the hate. //Roger Dean Kiser// It is not the physical pain that endangers orphans the most. It is the mental pain caused by stress from years and years of being neglected, pushed aside, disregarded, unloved, and made to feel undeserving, and in almost all cases, made to feel like a possession rather than an equal human being. //Roger Dean Kiser, from// //Orphan - A true Story of Abandonment, Abuse and Redemption.//

While I was researching, I thought of this question... . Is it better to educate the children on skills, or just give them what they need? I would say the answer is too educate them. But many philanthropic societies that help orphaned children acctually just give them food and water. Maybe these children would grow up to break the poverty cycle if only they had the education. Of course, I can understand the natural disasters, but are these societies really helping?