Two million volunteers to fight AIDS in Africa
1 December 2000

The Red Cross Red Crescent today marks World Aids Day with a frank admission that it has not been doing enough in view of the magnitude of the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa, where 25.3 million people are living with HIV/AIDS including over 100,000 Red Cross/Red Crescent volunteers.

The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies announced in the Kenyan capital Nairobi, a dramatic scaling up of its HIV/AIDS activities in 53 countries across Africa. It is mobilizing a network of two million volunteers to combat the spread of the disease in a ten-year commitment known as ARCHI 2010, the African Red Cross/Red Crescent Health Initiative.

Following two years of research in partnership with ministries of health across the continent, the International Federation is launching an appeal on World Aids Day seeking 18.2 million Swiss francs to ensure better management and support for its volunteer networks in a campaign which will centre on a "people-to-people, house-to-house" approach raising awareness, promoting condom use, and providing support to AIDS orphans and people living with the virus.

"The Red Cross was born on the battlefields of the 19th century but not even the horror of war in the 20th century can compare with the loss of life we are going to see in Africa over the first decade of this new millennium because of the AIDS pandemic. Almost as many people die in one year in Africa from this disease as did in the entire Vietnam War," said Mr. Bekele Geleta, Head of the International Federation's Africa Department. "

The pandemic can be curbed. Through our permanent networks of volunteers, National Societies are uniquely placed to effect behavioural changes on a large-scale in the communities of Africa by spreading simple, culturally sensitive messages around abstinence, fidelity and use of condoms," said Dr. Alvaro Bermejo, head of the Health Department.

"We must also put our own house in order by making our organization a better place for people living with HIV/AIDS by breaking the silence around the issue. There are estimated to be over 100,000 of our volunteers in Africa living with HIV/AIDS and many more world-wide," said Ms. Francoise LeGoff, Head of Regional Delegation in Nairobi.

The latest figures from UNAIDS show once more that Africa is the world's most affected region with an estimated 25.3 million adults and children living with the virus. Some 2.4 million Africans have died this year of AIDS-related diseases. Four of five women living with HIV and 90% of the world's HIV-positive children live in Africa, the figures show.

For further information, or to set up interviews, please contact:

Caroline Hurford, Information Delegate, Nairobi Tel: (254) 2 713 424 or (254) 72 513 360

Denis McClean, Head of Media Service Tel.: (41) 22 730 44 28

Christopher Black, Information Officer Tel. : (41) 22 730 43 77

Media Service, Geneva Mobile phone : (41) 79 416 3881

The Geneva-based International Federation promotes the humanitarian activities of 181 National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies among vulnerable people. By coordinating international disaster relief and encouraging development support, it seeks to prevent and alleviate human suffering. The Federation, National Societies and the International Committee of the Red Cross together, constitute the International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement.