The number of orphans in Ethiopia is rising in an alarming rate due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic, a senior government official said Sunday.

Mohammed Mealin Ali, state minister of labor and social affairs, told a nationwide conference that many children, who lost their parents due to HIV/AIDS, are facing social, economic and psychological challenges.

He said finding sustainable solutions for the problem demands commitment and participation of all concerned bodies.

The number of orphans is currently estimated to be over 4 million in Ethiopia with a population of nearly 70 million, he added.

The Ethiopian official alarmed a quarter of Ethiopian children may loose their parents due to the HIV/AIDS pandemic over the next five years.

According to government statistics, some 1.5 million Ethiopians are infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, while close to a million children have been orphaned by the disease. About 5,000 new infections are recorded weekly.

Source: Xinhua