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Nature 410, 968-973 (19 April 2001) | doi:10.1038/35073639
review article The global impact of HIV/AIDS
Peter Piot1, Michael Bartos1, Peter D. Ghys1, Neff Walker1 & Bernhard Schwartländer1
Abstract
The scale of the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV)/AIDS epidemic has exceeded all expectations since its identification 20 years ago. Globally, an estimated 36 million people are currently living with HIV, and some 20 million people have already died, with the worst of the epidemic centred on sub-Saharan Africa. But just as the spread of HIV has been greater than predicted, so too has been its impact on social capital, population structure and economic growth. Responding to AIDS on a scale commensurate with the epidemic is a global imperative, and the tools for an effective response are known. Nothing less than a sustained social mobilization is necessary to combat one of the most serious crises facing human development.
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