Zimbabwe is located in the southeast region of the African continent and borders the nations of Zambia, Botswana, Mozambique and South Africa. Formerly Rhodesia, the country gained independence in 1980. The country is rich in natural and human resources. Until recently, it was known as the “bread basket of Africa” and had one of the highest literacy rates in sub-Saharan Africa. However, in the past few years, Zimbabwe has become increasingly isolated, politically and economically, from the world community due to government policies that have destabilized the economy and contributed to increased poverty and homelessness.
There is an 80% unemployment rate, and reduced access to basic education and healthcare. The inflation in 2006 was 3714%, the highest in the world. Economic sanctions have been imposed on Zimbabwe by the United States, Australia and the European Union.

Zimbabwe is one of the countries most harshly affected by the AIDS pandemic. At this time, one fifth of its adult population is living with HIV. About one person every three minutes is becoming infected, making that an estimated 565 adults and children becoming infected every day. Life expectancy for women is between 30 and 34 years. Children bear the brunt of the crisis. As adult family members become ill and die, their children lose nurture, shelter, food, education, health care and safety.

Over ten percent, 1.1 million, of the population of Zimbabwe are orphans; this is a greater proportion than any other country in the world.4 Seventy-eight percent of orphaned children are the result of parents dying from AIDS. Currently, there are about 318,000 child-headed households in the country.

Given the current governmental climate in Zimbabwe, international aid organizations are reluctant to offer assistance, and in some cases are prohibited from doing so. The international community has been assisting other African nations to address the AIDS epidemic, but in the face of the political situation in Zimbabwe, many foreign donors have either decreased aid for the country or removed it altogether. It is estimated that each HIV-positive person in Zimbabwe receives $4 in aid annually, compared to Zambia, where each HIV-positive person receives around $187. The following saying of the Shona tribe of Zimbabwe poignantly illustrates the situation: “When elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers.” It is against this social and political backdrop that the orphans and vulnerable children are trying to eke out an existence for themselves.