The impact of the AIDS epidemic on teacher mortality in sub-Saharan Africa

This article discusses the commonly stated belief that teachers in Africa are among the groups most affected by HIV/AIDS and that their death rate is disproportionately high compared with the populations as a whole. Reasons given for this include the relative youth of teachers and the high number of women in the profession, since young people and women show higher prevalence as groups than others. The other reason given for claimed high prevalence in this group, as related by the author, is higher levels of sexual risk taking by teachers who tend to move around a lot, be relatively well-off and, it is alleged that male teachers commonly engage in sexual relations with students.

The author explores these ideas in this piece by looking at available data about HIV/AIDS in the profession. He finds that there is very little specific data due to a lack of voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) programmes and that even teacher mortality rates from all causes are difficult to come by. Using available mortality rates and data on prevalence amongst the population as a whole, as well as other available data, the author concludes that despite patchy evidence teacher mortality rates are usually considerably lower than for the adult population as a whole. He states that evidence suggests a decline in AIDS related mortality among teachers in the region and that the reasons for that decline are twofold: increased ARVs and changed sexual behaviour.

The article ends on a hopeful note, arguing that if teachers continue to change their behaviour and anti-retroviral drugs can be made available in all countries, there is every reason to believe that teacher mortality rates could fall quite significantly and quickly throughout the continent. It is essential therefore that teacher deaths in all countries are carefully monitored, especially over the next 3-4 years. Governments and their development partners must also act decisively to design and implement effective AIDS in the workplace programmes for teaching staff at all schools. These programmes should comprise of three inter-related components namely, comprehensive risk assessment, imaginative HIV education activities, and the provision of anti-retroviral drugs for all affected teachers as well as other support measures to mitigate the impact of the epidemic on both individual teachers and schools. [Adapted from author]