The majority of African children grow up in rural areas. Life in the rural areas is not materially comfortable for any child, but it is especially difficult for an African girl. Girls do not have the same opportunities in education or development that boys receive.



Girls are especially disadvantaged because most families would rather educate their sons than daughters. In the whole area of approximately 10,000 people, there are no more than 10 girls who have completed secondary school education, and no more than four girls who have gone to the university level.



As African nations lose adults in their prime working years, orphans have no alternative but to quit school and work to provide for themselves and their siblings. The economic, social and political aide for the children has disintegrated, adding to an already desperate situation.



» AIDS is now the leading cause of death in Sub-Saharan Africa.

» Of the 40 million individuals living with HIV/AIDS worldwide, 29.4 million are Africans.

» More than 20 million Africans have died from HIV/AIDS.

» More than 12 million African children have been orphaned by HIV/AIDS.