The impact of HIV/AIDS on food security and household vulnerability in Swaziland

Abstract

This study investigated the impact of HIV/AIDS on food security and household vulnerability in Swaziland. Personal interviews with 847 selected farming households revealed an increase in sales of crops and livestock to finance funerals and healthcare, a decrease in expenditure on agricultural inputs, and an increase in expenditure on medical bills and funerals. Most households were vulnerable to food insecurity. The affected households therefore need assistance in order to maintain food production and security, including support in the form of agricultural inputs such as fertilisers and seeds through the markets and special arrangements to allow them access to affordable inputs. Therapeutic feeding and home based care will be needed for the chronically ill in vulnerable households.

Factors Affecting Households Vulnerability to Climate Change in Swaziland: A Case of Mpolonjeni Area Development Programme (ADP)

“…Household labour is being diverted to caring for the sick, and skilled people die or fall sick living behind people with little or no skill on production. This has resulted in more households falling below the poverty line (Masuku & Sithole, 2009). Climate change is another threat faced by households in the country.…”

“…HIV and AIDS is one of the serious threats to livelihood with more than 40% of the population infected with the pandemic. Masuku and Sithole (2009) reported that there was a positive relationship between HIV and AIDS and food insecurity in the country, and that people were selling livestock as a means of sustenance and to pay medical bills and post death expenses. Crop production has gone down due to a decline in land utilisation, as inputs become unaffordable when the sick or dead member was the one providing finance for inputs.…”

The Effect of HIV and Art on the Development of Hypertension and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus

“…For instance, in Swaziland life expectancy decreased to 48 years, enlisting it among the lowest in the world; and orphaned and vulnerable children [OVC] were estimated at 104,026 in 2010 [5]. HIV also threatens food security [6,7] because of the increased demand of agricultural produce explained by the cyclical relationship between HIV and nutrition [8]; yet agricultural activities may be deserted due to ill health. For agroeconomy countries, such as Swaziland, poverty is worsened [9], and socio-economic gains reverse [10], putting a question to the long-term survival of such countries [11].…”

“…Traditionally, T helper cells are thought to differentiate into distinct subsets as Th1 and Th2 with different functions and patterns of cytokine secretion [6]. An imbalance in Th1/Th2 subsets is implicated in resistance and susceptibility to infection [2], the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases including diabetes mellitus [8], the development of atherosclerosis [86], and hypertensive kidney disease [6]. More evidence suggests that T helper cells have a subset that produces a unique cytokine, IL-17 [99] which has been implicated in the pathogenesis of many autoimmune and inflammatory diseases, and evidence supports that IL-17 has a role in cardiovascular diseases [56].…”

“…The specific subsets of T cells that are important in hypertension are unknown. Traditionally, T helper cells are thought to differentiate into distinct subsets as Th1 and Th2 with different functions and patterns of cytokine secretion [6]. An imbalance in Th1/Th2 subsets is implicated in resistance and susceptibility to infection [2], the pathogenesis of autoimmune diseases including diabetes mellitus [8], the development of atherosclerosis [86], and hypertensive kidney disease [6].…”