The ballooning HIV/AIDS rate in South Africa is exacting an increasing toll on the profitability of South African businesses. This note takes a look at the impact of the epidemic at the macroeconomic and business level, examining the negative macroeconomic repercussions of the disease and how these can impact overall business profitability. The note also examines the increased worker costs that the disease incurs (for example, through higher benefit payments, reduced productivity, increased recruitment and training, etc.) Finally, the note considers potential firm responses to the epidemic, profiling South African companies such as JD Group and Eskom, which have taken definitive but very different approaches to dealing with the impact of HIV/AIDS on their businesses.
