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        Statistics brought out recently by the National AIDS Control Organisation report an alarming increase of reported cases of HIV-AIDS in Tamilnadu in the last one-year. At 52, 036, the State ranks the highest from among other States and Union Territories in the country.

        On the reverse, the year that was, according to reports of the National Commission on Farmers and the Department of Agriculture, has been difficult for both farm and fisher families. The decline in productivity is evident not only because of the series of natural calamities that beset the State, but also because of lack of manpower who are mentally amenable and physically able to work on the land and seas.

        From the time HIV-AIDS was identified a quarter-century ago, the disease is primarily viewed only as a health issue, separate from agriculture and other aspects of development. But as the causes and consequences of AIDS epidemics become clearer, so does the fundamental importance of food and nutrition security.
 

INTERTWINED: Agriculture and HIV-AIDS are entwined in a vicious cycle. An increase in the number of people afflicted by the disease could mean a decline in agricultural productivity.

        Agriculture is the lifeblood of the country's economy. Seventy per cent of India's entire population depends on agriculture for their livelihood. If the agriculture sector fails to take a closer look on the prevention and control of HIV-AIDS, it will simply not be able to achieve its primary objective of improving food production. In eastern and southern Africa, the AIDS epidemic is already having serious consequences for agriculture by affecting adults at the height of their productive years, making it difficult for poor people, especially women, to provide food for their families. The crisis will only worsen, as young adults, who are disproportionately at risk from HIV, become household heads.

        On June 2006, the United Nations General Assembly called for 'all people at all times to have access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food - as part of a comprehensive response to HIV/AIDS'. This political declaration represents a significant shift in the global community's approach to combating the pandemic. The evidence and mandate are clear. The world needs to act, soon.

        Stuart Gillespie, Senior Research Fellow at the International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI), in a paper presented at the 16th International AIDS Conference, held on August at Toronto, Canada said that increasingly, people recognise that HIV/AIDS and hunger are entwined in a vicious cycle. Malnutrition and lack of food may heighten exposure to HIV and susceptibility to infection, while AIDS in turn exacerbates hunger.

        According to him, these links are particularly acute in rural communities, where households are often dependent on agriculture for both income and food. For that reason, improving rural livelihoods and agricultural production can help reduce both the spread of HIV and the effects of AIDS. Programs that reduce the need for poor people to migrate to look for work (e.g., by restoring degraded land) can reduce their risk of being exposed to the virus.

        As evidence of the interactions between AIDS and hunger has accumulated, both agriculture and nutrition specialists have begun to take AIDS into account. In turn, AIDS experts have become increasingly aware of the critical importance of nutrition. Gillespie added that it is clear that development experts from different sectors must work together if we are to win the fight against HIV and AIDS.

        To assist affected households and communities to better respond, IFPRI and its partners in the Regional Network on HIV/AIDS, Rural Livelihoods and Food Security (RENEWAL) are calling for a three-pronged approach to the crisis: strengthen household and community resistance to HIV and resilience to AIDS; sustain and enhance opportunities for food and income in affected communities; ensure safety nets for those who are otherwise unable to cope.

        The core pillars of global AIDS policy - prevention, treatment and care, and mitigation - remain key, but the growing understanding of the integral role that food and nutrition can play needs to be better reflected throughout.

        Today is World Aids Day, to be successful in eradicating the disease, the public must support and empower community-driven responses and innovations, develop and link both short- and long-term responses, and focus on action research, or 'learning by doing'. By bringing together agriculture, nutrition, and health, breakthroughs in combating HIV-AIDS and reduction of hunger and poverty can be achieved at the same time.