111.   But Uganda is the only African country where the infection rate is declining, to about half the level of a decade ago, according to World Bank figures.

112.   Cambodia also borders Laos and Vietnam, countries where infection rates also have rapidly increased.

113.   Cambodia is especially vulnerable, with infection rates outstripping those of Africa.

114.   Cambodia, a country recovering from three decades of war and civil strife, has the highest HIV infection rate in Asia.

115.   Despite advances in AIDS treatment and falling infection rates in the West, the study said the virus is hitting Africa much harder than earlier believed.

116.   Despite the high infection rate, those who are known to be infected are generally shunned, so they often try to keep their illness secret.

117.   Figures show the infection rate for the disease is extremely high in Guangdong province but fairly low in Hong Kong, according to medics.

118.   He said the drop in infection rates is not reflected in the countryside, many because the awareness programs have focused on urban areas.

119.   He said vulnerable countries in Asia, Eastern Europe and the Caribbean risk a similar catastrophe unless they act now to control infection rates.

120.   HIV infection rates have exploded in southern Africa after ravaging other parts of the continent, and South Africa is one of the hardest hit.