Problems in Africa, Educate Yourself.

as you know FIFA WORLD CUP 2010 is held in South Africa from June 11th till July 11th. that is for the whole one month. i know that the game supposedly to be fun and enjoyable but at the same time, we should remember that there is somebody out there in that part of the world is suffering and in excruciating pain either lacking of food and nutrition and water, injuries from war, rapes and so much more. i am not saying saying that all these happen in South Africa, but i'm talking about Africa as a whole. i know that most of you probably know about all these facts, but i think once in a while, as a human, we forgot about the less fortunate because we tend to worry about our own selves. but to those of you who don't know, these are the facts about problems in Africa.

1. A child dies every 3 seconds from AIDS and poverty, often before their 5th birthday.
2. More than a billion people do not have access to clean water.
3. Every year, more than 6 million children die from malnutrition, often before their 5th birthday.
4. More than 50 percent of Africans suffer from water-related diseases such as cholera and infant diarrhea.
5. Everyday 300,000 children die from combination of disease- infected water and malnutrition.
6. More than 800 million people go to bed hungry everyday, 300 million are children.
7. Of the 300 million children, only 8 percent are victims of famine and other emergency situations. More than 90 percent are suffering long-term malnourishment and micronutrient deficiency.
8. 200,000 child slaves are sold every year in Africa. There are an estimated 8,000 girl slaves in West-Africa* alone.
9. About 120,000 children are participating in armed conflicts. Some are as young as 7 years old.
10. Children account for half of all the casualties in wars in Africa.
11. One in six African children dies before the age of 5. Most of these deaths could be prevented.
12. Nearly one-third of children in Sub-Saharan Africa are underweight.
13. In Sub-Saharan Africa*, measles* takes the life of a child nearly every minute of every day. An effective measles vaccine costs as little as $1 per child.
14. Between 12 and 14 million African children have been orphaned by HIV/AIDS.
15. Nearly 2 million children under 14 years old are HIV positive.
16. In Sub-Saharan Africa, to this date, nearly 18 million people have died because of AIDS and 3 million of them are children.
17. 64 percent of Sub-Saharan children do not have adequate sanitation.
18. Only 57 percent of African children are enrolled in primary education and one in three of those does not complete school.
19. For every 100 boys there are only 83 girls enrolled at primary school.

* = West Africa - Benin, Burkina Faso, Cote d'lvoire, Cape Verde, The Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, and Togo.

* = Sub-Saharan Africa - African countries that are located South of the Sahara such as Botswana, Congo Ethiopia, Malawi, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, just to name a few.

* = measles - acute and highly contagious viral disease marked by distinct red spots followed by rash. usually happened to malnourished children. 

i hope with these facts has enlighten you a little bit about the problems circulating all over Africa. these problems has been there since i could even remember. i know that as a person we can't change anything, but if we pull ourselves and resources together, i'm sure we can make a difference. even though it could be small, but it would enough miracle for them. 

p/s: i'm sure about the figures are uptodate. if its not i'm sorry.