Posted: Monday 4 October 2010
Talking Points: John Briggs, Professor of Geography at the University of Glasgow.
In a talk titled '21st Century Challenges in Africa', John Briggs, the Professor of Geography at the University of Glasgow, explained to sixth year pupils that "three crucial challenges were affecting Africa as a whole."
The first, he said, was the major problem of HIV/AIDS. Out of the 33.4 million people who were suffering from the disease, 68% of them lived in Sub-Saharan Africa. He described the population of certain countries such as Botswana and Tanzania being literally "pulled out" due to the disease. It severely reduced the life expectancy of nations and, in some cases, the necessary health expenditure to help people suffering from the disease cost more than the countries annual Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
However, he did also state that "progress could be made." And there was some good news. HIV peaked in 1996 and in 2008 and new cases of the infection were 30% lower than in previous years. Seventy five% of those in Rwanda suffering from the disease are receiving the necessary antiretroviral drugs.
The second major issue he explained was the failure of small-scale agriculture in Africa. The increasing urbanisation of the continent, he said, was "bad news for the global population" as at one point, grain stocks were as low as 2-3 weeks globally.
Finally, he said the third major problem he discussed was financial aid and its failure. He said that the aid itself was often the problems as it leads to corruption, the reduction of investment and the problem of increased inflation in the countries.
Overall, the talk informed the audience about the plight of African nations and the different struggles that they all faced.