Poverty Implications of HIV/AIDS in the Pacific

Poverty has decreased dramatically throughout most of the Asia and Pacific region. From 1990 to 2000 the number of people living in poverty across the region fell by 165 million (ADB, 2004a). However, economic growth in India and the People’s Republic of China has driven much of the reduction in headline poverty figures. Other parts of the region, most notably the Pacific, have not witnessed a similar spectacular fall in poverty. Isolation, erosion of human capital, youth unemployment, inequitable growth, and political instability are challenges that Pacific states need to overcome if they are to reduce poverty and achieve development goals shared internationally.

The overall objectives of this study are to quantify the poverty impacts of an escalating HIV/AIDS crisis in the Pacific, and to raise awareness and increase understanding among key decision makers.