JOHANNESBURG, 20 May (PLUSNEWS) - With conflict and natural disaster fuelling the spread of HIV/AIDS in the developing world, the UN Inter Agency Standing Committee Task Force on HIV/AIDS in Emergency Settings (IASC-TF) has released a practical handbook on effective interventions in the field. Full report

HARARE, 17 May (PLUSNEWS) - Zimbabwean men have become increasingly involved in caring for AIDS patients, challenging the stereotype that caring for the terminally ill is women's work. Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 9 April (PLUSNEWS) - In May 1994, a month after being sworn in as the ruling party, the African National Congress (ANC) drew up a National Health Plan which addressed the challenge of HIV/AIDS. Only now, a decade later, is a comprehensive treatment plan being rolled out. Full report

KWANYUSWA, 7 April (PLUSNEWS) - A TV music channel blares as a passing nurse swings her hips to pop rhythms, cheered on by patients in rickety hospital beds. At first glance Ikhaya Lobomi ("House of Life") seems to do its name justice but, on closer examination, it becomes clear that this is a place for the rejected and the dying. Full report

MAPUTO, 2 April (PLUSNEWS) - Michel Sidibé is the director of the Department of Country and Regional Support at UNAIDS. He is also a member of the Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa, established by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan to offer analysis and recommendations on the pandemic to political leaders. He spoke to PlusNews about the challenges facing African governments and societies. Full report

MAPUTO, 1 April (PLUSNEWS) - Lying on a mat outside her crumbling mud hut, 20-year-old Eva Matos gasps for breath, her skeletal chest heaving under a grimy sheet. Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 1 April (PLUSNEWS) - The South African cabinet on 8 August 2003 finally approved the provision of anti-AIDS drugs for HIV-positive people through the public health system and instructed the health ministry to act "with urgency". Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 1 April (PLUSNEWS) - Dr Blackburn was one of eight doctors, a team of pharmacists, nurses, and dieticians on duty at the new antiretroviral treatment (ART) clinic at Johannesburg Hospital on Thursday, awaiting the expected flood of patients on the first day of the anti-AIDS drugs rollout in South Africa's Gauteng Province. Full report

JOHANNESBURG, 1 April (PLUSNEWS) - South Africa's Gauteng province on Thursday began the distribution of free antiretroviral (ARV) drugs to HIV-positive patients qualifying for treatment. Full report

MAPUTO, 31 March (PLUSNEWS) - Milly Katana is a members of the Commission on HIV/AIDS and Governance in Africa, which was established last year by UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan. A long-standing AIDS activist and founder of the Pan African Treatment Access Movement, she spoke to PlusNews on the need for accelerated treatment programmes. Full report