What is the impact of the disease on development in terms of the strong Irish programme I have outlined? It is clear from the statistics I just mentioned that all gains in development are in danger of being undermined by this corrosive threat. The most potent evidence of its impact is the reduction of life expectancy in the continent by more than ten years. Other gains in the area of education and literacy have been seriously undermined. The impact of HIV and AIDS is most severely felt by the poor – effectively those who are disempowered – and particularly by vulnerable groups such as women, children and the elderly. Young women in particular are at risk, both biologically and socially. Women are more vulnerable to HIV infection due to less secure employment, lower incomes, less access to formal social security, fewer entitlement to assets and savings and little power to negotiate sex. They are more likely to be poorly educated and have uncertain access to land, credit and education.