"African countries face formidable challenges in public health, particularly with the rapid spread of HIV/AIDS and the persistence of malaria and related killer diseases such as tuberculosis which wreck havoc with people’s lives. Other challenges the African countries are experiencing include the deterioration of health infrastructures and low and declining investments in health research. For many of these countries, this state of affairs has resulted in a considerable drop in life expectancy in the last two decades. This is particularly so in the sub-Saharan Africa where the burden of disease is pervasive and most pronounced..."