The International Monetary Fund warned that AIDS is stunting Mozambique’s economic progress, especially since the country’s most economically fruitful age bracket is also the group with the highest infection rates. Over 16 percent of individuals between the ages of 14 and 49 have the disease, and 500 new infections emerge everyday in the southern African nation. “It is affecting the prospects of Mozambique, particularly its limited human resources,” said Age Bakker, who leads an IMF mission to the country. “We recommend the government to work harder, although we reckon that it (the pandemic) has the full attention of the government.” Mozambique, however, is still trying to rehabilitate its ailing health care system, which suffered serious neglect during a 17-year civil war that raged throughout the country until the early 90’s.
Source: AIDS a major threat to Mozambican economy - IMF (Reuters)
