Russia is gaining in economic prosperity, but they are losing control of AIDS epidemic. This is a country that cannot afford to loose people since their birth rate is among the lowest in the world. To give you an idea, the death rate is higher than the birth rate. Overall, in 2005 during the first six months of the year, 507,300 people were born and 998,500 died, leading to a natural population decrease of 401,200 people.
The HIV infection rate is exploding. In cities such as St. Petersburg, the infection rate has multiplied 250 fold since 1996. Quoted in Pravda.ru, The Director of the Federal Scientific Center for AIDS at Russia's Ministry of Health, Vadim Pokrovsky, warns that Russia is likely to follow the "African model" with up to an 80 percent infection rate in some parts." This is catastrophic and must be addressed by organizations working in the country. Click here to read an Indepth article entitled: AIDS, Europe's new plague.
Click on the HopeChest website here to find out what we are doing in Russia and how you can be involved.
