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SOUTHERN AFRICA: HIV/AIDS, poverty leave over 3m short of food

[This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

JOHANNESBURG , 29 June (PLUSNEWS) - Despite better harvests in Southern Africa, more than three million people will remain short of food because of HIV/AIDS and poverty, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned this week.

The announcement was made after a one-day conference by the Southern Africa Development Community (SADC) in Johannesburg, where participants heard that Malawi recorded its best harvest in nearly five years because of better rainfall and a greater availability of seeds and fertilisers.

While welcoming the news, WFP Executive Director James Morris, who is also the UN Secretary General's Special Envoy, noted that the region was not completely out of the woods yet.

"As long as HIV/AIDS remains at such epic proportions throughout Southern Africa, a large number of people will face severe hardship unless international assistance is provided. Good harvests do not necessarily mean people have enough to eat," he said in a statement.

According to the 2006 Report on the UNAIDS Global Epidemic, one-third of the worldwide 2005 AIDS death-toll occurred in Southern Africa, the region hardest-hit.

[ENDS]

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