Washington, DC — Africare, a non-profit organization dedicated to improving the quality of life in African countries, announced today that it has received a grant of $1,996,750 from the William H. Gates Foundation to help fight HIV and AIDS among adolescents and young adults in Southern Africa.
"This is a watershed for us," said Africare President C. Payne Lucas. "This grant will finally enable Africare to make a major stand against the spread of HIV and AIDS in the worst-hit countries of Africa. We are hoping that this grant will encourage others to join the fight."
The three-year program will help existing community-based initiatives to improve the quality of their services, extend their reach, strengthen their problem-solving abilities and replicate best practices. The program is targeting Zimbabwe, Zambia, Malawi and South Africa - countries where HIV/AIDS and other sexually transmitted diseases are rampant.
In recent years, as HIV and AIDS have spread rapidly in Southern Africa, there has been an increase in the number of community-based efforts to cope with the impact. Churches, civic groups and concerned individuals are struggling to meet basic care and counseling needs, to fill the gap left by government health and social welfare services. Africare's involvement will advance these efforts and propagate the skills required for their survival. "Our strategy will be to help these local groups reach the youth soon enough to reduce the number of people who may otherwise be infected with HIV," said Lucas.
The William H. Gates Foundation, established by Bill and Melinda Gates, is using a portion of its resources to help improve the health of people in developing countries. Much of its efforts are devoted to boosting the chances of survival for infants and children around the world, through the Bill and Melinda Gates Children's Vaccine Program.
Africare, a private non-profit organization founded in 1971, is committed to providing people in Africa with the skills and resources to improve their own lives. This convergence of purpose is what has led the two organizations to work together to fight the spread of HIV and AIDS in Africa.
