Netaid.org Puts Global HIV/AIDS Prevention
On-line
Project of Cisco Systems and United Nations Development Programme Allows
Internet Users to Learn About and Support HIV/AIDS Programs in Africa and
Southeast Asia
New York - In anticipation of World AIDS Day tomorrow, Netaid today announced that it had added a series of HIV/AIDS prevention, outreach, and care projects to its roster of on-line programs designed to lift people out of extreme poverty. Netaid's new effort takes aim at the HIV/AIDS epidemic in some of the worst affected areas of Africa and Southeast Asia.
Founded by Cisco Systems and the United Nations Development Programme, Netaid gives Internet users a direct way to contribute to projects in the developing world. The HIV/AIDS initiative seeks to educate about problems facing the world's poorest communities and to channel support to those who need it most by featuring innovative programs developed by local, national, and international groups.
"While treatment and prevention of HIV/AIDS continues to improve in countries like the United States, this epidemic is destroying opportunities for entire generations in parts of the developing world," said David Morrison, President of the Netaid.org Foundation. "If current trends continue, it is estimated that more than 50 percent of the young people in some areas of Africa will die of an AIDS-related disease before the age of 35. "
Data just released by UNAIDS show that, in 2000 alone, some 5.3 million people were infected with HIV and that half of all new HIV infections are occurring in people under 25 years, a crippling factor for developing countries where young adults are relied upon to care for the elderly, nurture the next generation, and drive the economic and political systems.
Netaid.org sees hope in successes in countries such as Uganda and Senegal, where transmission of HIV has been reduced through education, outreach, and prevention strategies that give people the knowledge they need to avoid contracting and spreading the disease.
Internet users are offered a variety of ways to contribute to HIV/AIDS prevention, health care, and expanded economic opportunities for people in affected communities. In addition to learning more about HIV/AIDS and its impact on the developing world, visitors to the site can donate "kits" that go directly to on-site programs working to end the epidemic. These include:
- Youth Center Kit/South Africa - supports staff costs, entertainment and special events that will help teens learn how to stay HIV-free. The youth centers are part of the loveLife campaign, a comprehensive national sexual health program created by a collaboration of health agencies, youth groups, and media organizations - with primary sponsorship from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.
- Training and Care Kit for Community Members/Zimbabwe - provides one community-based caregiver with the training and materials needed to assist 10 families living with AIDS. This effort is overseen by Pact, a US-based international development organization working on health, agriculture, natural resource management, and care for vulnerable groups in 22 countries.
- Business Startup Kit for Mothers/Zambia - offers a loan and training for mothers to develop an income-generating business to help support the family when a family member has AIDS. This program is coordinated by Project Concern International, a San Diego-based non-profit that is helping communities in 11 countries prevent illness and increase access to affordable, quality health services.
- HIV/AIDS Education Kit /Myanmar - includes the training and materials to educate one fisherman or his wife about how to protect themselves, their family, and others against the spread of HIV/AIDS. Implemented by Population Services International, a network of non-profit health social marketing organizations operating in almost 50 countries, the project is part of a broader collaborative effort coordinated by UNAIDS.
Netaid.Org directs in-kind e-contributions and on-line volunteers to innovative programs that create opportunities to help eliminate poverty in the world's poorest nations. The website enables Internet users to:
- Learn about development projects around the world;
- Donate directly to programs that help people in a tangible way;
- Volunteer their talents on-line - on their own time from their own computer;
- Monitor a project's progress - in real time.
Netaid.org was founded by Cisco Systems and the United Nations Development Programme to provide Internet users with opportunities to take action on extreme poverty around the world. All contributions to Netaid.org go directly to support development projects.
