Red Cross marks World AIDS Day
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However, much is still to be done. In 2011, 2.5 million people were newly infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS, and 1.7 million died from AIDS-related illnesses. Today, 34 million people are living with HIV around the world.
National Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies have joined together in a Global Alliance on HIV. Their resolution is to do more, and do it better, in our collective fight against this epidemic. The Red Cross Red Crescent Movement is working in countries around the world to prevent and treat HIV, and tackling the stigma and discrimination that feed the epidemic.
In the Congo, a Red Cross mother-child unit within an HIV/AIDS daycare centre offers testing and counselling to pregnant women. Women who test positive for HIV are offered free care and treatment for themselves and their infants. In Southern Alberta, the Canadian Red Cross has partnered with Aboriginal partners at Calgary’s Coalition on HIV/AIDS, developing a program called the Tipi of Courage. This program battles ignorance, stigma and misinformation about HIV, and mobilizes the Aboriginal community to prevent the spread of HIV.
If you would like to support the work of the Red Cross Movement in helping to building healthier stronger communities around the world, please donate to our International Programs Fund.
