SA Lagging Behind Tiny Rwanda in Fight against HIV/AIDS. 17/8/10
Our country is failing in some developmental projects when compared to smaller and poorer African countries, writes Loyiso Langeni
By Loyiso Langeni
17 August 2010
SA COULD learn valuable lessons from Rwanda’s structural reforms that have prioritised education and healthcare — especially the fight against HIV/AIDS — as fundamental cornerstones of national policy .
Rwanda is one of the world’s poorest countries, with a gross domestic product (GDP) per capita of 1150, according to statistics from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).
In comparison, SA’s GDP per capita is 10291, nine times bigger than that of Rwanda, according to the World Bank. Yet SA is lagging behind this tiny central African country in terms of achievements in education and the fight against HIV/AIDS.
The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) has commended Rwanda’s political leadership for being adept in addressing hurdles in education and HIV/AIDS.
Rwanda scores an impressive primary school enrolment rate of 97%, as primary education is free and mandatory, figures from the UNDP show. Since 1994 , Rwanda has also been able to achieve gender parity in primary and secondary education.
The investment in education is already bearing fruit as women have been elevated to occupy major roles of responsibility within Rwanda’s economy and government.
Women now make up 50% of parliamentary seats as part of a government quota to encourage more women to participate in politics.
“Women now comprise 43% of elected local government leaders and hold close to half the seats in parliament. With this, Rwanda offers an outstanding example, not only to other African countries but to the entire world,” UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said on a visit to the country two years ago.
Similar successes have been realised in the fight against HIV/AIDS. In 2000, Rwanda had one of the region’s highest infection rates of HIV at 13%, according to the UNDP. However, the latest UNDP figures indicate that this rate has been successfully brought down to 3% of Rwanda’s 10-million- strong population .
Maternal mortality has also been significantly reduced, by 30% between 2000 and 2005.
Through these achievements, Rwanda has met two of the Millennium Development Goals.
In contrast, SA — despite being wealthier and having a more sophisticated economy than Rwanda and most African countries — is yet to record significant improvements in education and healthcare.
In fact, the World Bank report SA: Second Investment Climate Assessment, released last month, cited the lack of skills and training among SA’s workforce as obstacles that hindered productivity and competitiveness.
Data from the UN Children’s Fund show that primary school enrolment in SA was recorded at 86% between 2003 and 2008.
Azar Jammine, chief economist at Econometrix, last month said: “SA’s role in Africa has declined over the last 15 years” because of a failure to invest resources creatively in education and training, among other things.
“Lack of education among the youth has discouraged them from participating in SA’s economy,” Mr Jammine said. This was compounded by the mismatch between the availability of skills and jobs on the market.
Most schools, especially in townships and rural areas, do not have the resources to prepare the youth for opportunities in SA’s first world economy once they have graduated from this phase.
SA’s Department of Health, in its 15-year overview of health and healthcare in SA from 1994 to 2010, lays bare the progress and challenges.
The report admits that SA has achieved “limited effort to curtail (the spread) of HIV/AIDS”. Until recently, SA gained international notoriety for its controversial and unconventional position on how to treat people infected with HIV/AIDS.
While there are no reliable figures available on infection rates in SA, the country is reported to have 5-million people infected with HIV/AIDS .
The Department of Health’s report blamed “insufficient leadership and innovation” for SA’s failure to address challenges in the health sector.
On the other hand, Rwanda has demonstrated that even with limited resources a nation can improve its competitiveness and productivity, as well as its population’s health and education . In comparison, SA is running out of excuses.