Support is Replacing Stigma for Many Orphans This World AIDS Day, Save the Children Says

WESTPORT, CT–(Marketwire – November 29, 2010) – African community groups are transforming the future for orphans and other children affected by HIV and AIDS thanks to U.S.-funded programs, Save the Children said.

“The United States is doing much more than providing lifesaving drug treatment when it comes to helping people around the world battle the AIDS crisis and it must continue to do so,” said Charles MacCormack, President and CEO of Save the Children. “One of the most remarkable changes is the creation of African community networks dedicated to supporting orphans and other children affected by HIV and AIDS.”

“It’s amazing how care and support can replace stigma and isolation when local groups are empowered to mobilize around children who have been orphaned and left vulnerable by HIV and AIDS,” MacCormack said.

More than 17 million children have lost one or both parents to AIDS. Many millions more children have reduced opportunities in life because HIV and AIDS have struck their families and communities. Most of these children are in Africa.

The United States President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has funded programs offering care and support to more than 3.6 million orphans and vulnerable children in Africa. Save the Children has led several of these large programs in Mozambique, Uganda, and Ethiopia and has put special emphasis on empowering local community groups to care for affected children. The result is sustainable change for children.

For World AIDS Day (Dec. 1), Save the Children has released a new multimedia video highlighting new hope for orphans and other children affected by AIDS in Ethiopia, where 530,000 children have benefited from U.S.-funded programs. 

“One of the most interesting changes involves Ethiopia neighborhood associations that originally formed to help poor families cover funeral expenses,” MacCormack said. “Today these groups have transformed to offer new hope to the living. They are helping children get an education, enough to eat, a place to live, and, perhaps most importantly, a renewed sense of community and loving support that they had lost to AIDS.”

See the video and learn how you can help support children affected by HIV and AIDS here:
www.savethechildren.org/worldAIDSday2010

Save the Children is the leading, independent organization that creates lasting change for children in need in the United States and 120 countries around the world.