Newsroom
Tsunami+1 Update
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Press Contact: Kavya Rajan
kavya@aifoundation.org / (646) 530-8964
New York (AIF), November 29, 2005 – The American India Foundation (AIF) will launch four initiatives on World AIDS Day, December 1, 2005 to further the mandate of its Public Health – HIV/AIDS focus area: (1) the India Public Health – HIV/AIDS MediCorps (IPHAM), (2) an AIDS in India panel discussion, (3) a web-based public information outreach effort, and (4) preparation for an AIDS Summit in Washington, DC in early 2006. All four initiatives aim to raise awareness amongst the Indian-American community and the community-at-large on the growing epidemic of HIV/AIDS in India.
“Indian-Americans must provide high-level visibility, leadership and resources to accelerate the prevention and mitigate against the stigma and discrimination of HIV/AIDS in India,” insists AIF Co-Chair Rajat Gupta. “Broad-based alliances and strong partnerships will make HIV/AIDS a surmountable problem; AIF hopes that all Indians everywhere will contribute to this endeavor.”
India has the second largest HIV-positive population in the world with a conservative estimate of 5.1 million Indians infected with HIV; some place the number as high as 10 million infected persons. According to the Delhi-based National AIDS Control Organization (NACO), the predominant mode of transmission is heterosexual contact, totaling 85.7% of HIV-positive cases in India. While many Indians believe the epidemic is relegated to fringe communities, HIV is becoming increasingly prevalent amongst the mainstream, middle classes.
“The face of AIDS in India is changing,” adds AIF HIV/AIDS Program Director, Rema Nanda, “putting those who are female, poor and young at very high risk of getting infected.” “Growing infection rates among women and children is of paramount concern to us,” she adds. One of the biggest and most shocking risk factors for Indian women infected with HIV is marriage; many women receive the virus through their husbands due to the latter’s risky behavior. In addition, high infection rates among women lead to a concomitant increase in the number of pediatric HIV-positive cases from mother-to-child transmission.
In early 2006, AIF will pilot the India Public Health – HIV/AIDS MediCorps (IPHAM) by recruiting an initial four to six Indian-American public health care professionals to be placed with Indian organizations to tackle the prevention, treatment and care of HIV/AIDS. The overall objective of IPHAM is to transfer knowledge and skills of MediCorps professionals to their counterparts in India, who could then train others for a multitudinal “ripple effect.” IPHAM benefits all those involved, including the MediCorps volunteers by providing them with an opportunity to give back.
Secondly, AIF will participate in a panel discussion, AIDS in India, co-presented by the South Asian Journalists Association (SAJA), the Rubin Museum of Art and MediaChannel.Org. The panel discussion will take place on World AIDS Day, Thursday, December 1, 2005, at 7:00 PM at the Rubin Museum of Art. Speaking at the panel will be AIF HIV/AIDS Program Director, Rema Nanda, as well as other experts and practitioners from India and globally.
Thirdly and beginning on World AIDS Day, AIF will launch a web-based public information outreach effort to promote knowledge and awareness of the epidemic in India. The HIV/AIDS crisis in India, while large in scale, can be overcome provided a coordinated, coherent national-level response occurs as soon as possible. The AIF website will serve as an information-sharing tool to educate browsers on the current status of the epidemic and responses from the various sectors in India – public, private, bi-lateral, multi-lateral and non-profit. It will serve as a resource for facts and frequently-asked-questions to dismantle myths about HIV and AIDS. The website will also document AIF’s ongoing initiatives in real-time.
Fourthly, AIF will work closely with Avahan, the India AIDS initiative of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, to convene a high-level AIDS Summit in Washington, DC in early 2006. The Summit will bring together influential thought leaders and practitioners from all sectors – including government, corporations, and the health care and pharmaceutical community – to take stock of progress in battling HIV/AIDS in India and discuss urgent actions to scale up responses to the emerging epidemic.
About AIF
The American India Foundation (AIF) is an international development organization charged with the mission of accelerating social and economic change in India. By mobilizing people and resources across the United States, AIF has raised over $26 million since its inception following the Gujarat earthquake in 2001. AIF operates in three thematic pillars of work: Education, Livelihood and Public Health. Towards this end, AIF awards grants to India NGOs and administers three flagship programs, all of which further its development mission. The grant making strategy involves identifying projects that build up AIF’s thematic pillars, especially by universalizing elementary education, advancing women’s empowerment and raising awareness on HIV/AIDS in India. AIF’s flagship programs are: (1) Service Corps Fellowship, developing young American leaders by placing them with Indian NGOs based on Fellows’ skills and NGOs’ needs; (2) Digital Equalizer, bridging the “digital divide” by providing computers, Internet and training to under-resources schools; and (3) League of Artisans, creating sustainable livelihoods for underprivileged artisans, particularly tribal, rural and women artisans. AIF works out of New York and Silicon Valley in the US, and New Delhi and Bangalore in India. President Bill Clinton serves as AIF Honorary Chair.
For more information contact:
Press Contact: Kavya Rajan
kavya@aifoundation.org / (646) 530-8964
http://www.AIFoundation.org