June 25, 2008

Rising Food Prices Harm Positive Ethiopians

The global rise in food prices is forcing people in Ethiopia to give up such nutritional staples as vegetables and eggs, compromising a healthy diet. However, for people living with HIV in the country, poor nutrition may create an even greater risk, PlusNews reports (plusnews.org, 6/23).

“ART [antiretroviral treatment] can’t work if people aren’t eating enough; this is where food prices impact more strongly on [positive people],” United Nations World Food Program (WFP) coordinator Gideon Cohen told PlusNews. Food prices in the sub-Saharan African country have risen 40 percent in the past year.

According to the article, a lack of food—coupled with a severe and ongoing drought—has rendered many HIV-positive Ethiopians too weak to work and support their families. Nearly 8 percent of the country’s urban population is living with the virus.

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