Washington, DC — The Corporate Council on Africa (CCA) announced today the launch of a new service on the CCA website offering companies easy access to resources; on-the-ground technical support; and funding opportunities to initiate and strengthen private sector HIV/AIDS initiatives in Africa.

CCA President Stephen Hayes spoke to the importance of the new service available to private sector companies and organizations. “The U.S. corporations invested in Africa must play an integral role in the fight against HIV/AIDS, and the enhanced presence of the CCA HIV/AIDS Initiative on the CCA website will permit our team to be more effective in assisting members to develop and implement effective HIV/AIDS business plans.”

The CCA HIV/AIDS Initiative, in its second year, is supported by a grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Over the grant’s three-year duration, the Corporate Council on Africa, whose members represent approximately 85% of U.S. private sector investment in Africa, has committed to working with each of its members to establish effective HIV/AIDS prevention, care and treatment programs in the workplace. On the continent, member companies will be involved in developing national HIV/AIDS plans and will work with African national business coalitions on HIV/AIDS.

The interactive HIV/AIDS web page educates users about the mission and progress of the CCA HIV/AIDS Initiative, including recent in-country program work; features CCA member companies that are actively addressing HIV/AIDS in the workplace; provides information on funding opportunities for private sector initiatives; lists upcoming events and conferences; and provides access to resource materials, guides and toolkits to assist companies in Africa in the development of HIV/AIDS workplace programs. The new web page also features the HIV/AIDS Initiative quarterly newsletter.

We encourage companies to make use of this new service by visiting the CCA website at www.africacncl.org and clicking on HIV/AIDS.