England stars support fight against HIV/AIDS

Members of the England cricket team have visited projects in St Lucia as part of the ICC’s partnership with UNAIDS, UNICEF and the Caribbean Broadcast Media Partnership on HIV/AIDS.

Ian Bell visited the Centre for Adolescent Renewal and Education (CARE) Odsam Centre, which offers an alternative two-year programme for teens, who for a variety of reasons are not in secondary school. During the first year, the focus on is on life skills education, including HIV prevention and during the second year they focus on learning vocational skills.

While at CARE, Bell got the opportunity to see how the students have been applying the information learnt in class about HIV when some of them performed a self-penned skit showing the impact of stigma and decimation on children affected HIV. In addition Bell was also taken on a tour by the students where he also saw their creative works, in carpentry, dressmaking as well as auto mechanics.

Around the same time Ian Bell was visiting the CARE centre, two of his other team mates, Ravi Bopara and Sajid Mahmood, were visiting the Vide Bouteille Combined Primary School in Castries, where the UNICEF Eastern Caribbean Office has also been supporting the teaching of life skills.

Bopara and Mahmood also interacted with the students and learnt about the impact the programmes at the school have had on their lives.

Undoubtedly the visits left an indelible mark on the on the children. 18 year old Alicia Bretney, who attends CARE and intends to focus on dressmaking as a career, said: “The visit has given me more desire, more passion to work on my designs. Just knowing that someone took the time to visit is an inspiration.”

According to Bell, visits such as these afford international cricketers the opportunity to give back and to inspire others to reach towards their goals. This is important in HIV prevention.

"It's massively important to give back”, He said. “I feel very lucky and privileged of the fact that I've been able to achieve what I want to, and it's nice to be able to give back to kids, and hopefully give them an opportunity or some insight into how I've been able to do it, and how other people have, so they can go off and try to achieve exactly what they want to in life."

One of the objectives of the Unite for Children, Unite Against AIDS campaign is to empower young people with the skills to protect themselves from HIV and visits such as these are important because they boost the children’s self- esteem which is crucial for young people as they adopt, as well as maintain a positive lifestyle.

This was noted by UNICEF Eastern Caribbean Office Health Education Specialist, Ms. Elaine King, as she commented on the visits.

King said: “Our research is showing that the children with low self-esteem and self confidence are particularly vulnerable to peer pressure and making poor choices when confronted with issues concerning their sexuality, among other issues. So if a cricketer can boost the self confidence of one child, then that is one more child on its way to adopting a positive lifestyle

BACKGROUND

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International Cricket Council (ICC)

In September 2003 the ICC became the first global sporting body to enter into a partnership with UNAIDS to help raise awareness and reduce stigma around AIDS. This partnership, which has seen a series of activities take place since its inception, including annual activities on World AIDS Day and at major ICC events, was joined by UNICEF in 2006.

UNAIDS

UNAIDS, the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS, brings together the efforts and resources of ten UN system organizations to the global AIDS response. Cosponsors include UNHCR, UNICEF, WFP, UNDP, UNFPA, UNODC, ILO, UNESCO, WHO and the World Bank. Based in Geneva, the UNAIDS Secretariat works on the ground in more than 80 countries world wide. Visit the UNAIDS website at:

UNICEF

UNICEF is on the ground in 155 countries and territories to help children survive and thrive, from early childhood through adolescence. The world’s largest provider of vaccines for developing countries, UNICEF supports child health and nutrition, good water and sanitation, quality basic education for all boys and girls, and the protection of children from violence, exploitation, and AIDS. UNICEF is funded entirely by the voluntary contributions of individuals, businesses, foundations and governments.

Caribbean Broadcast Media Partnership on HIV/AIDS (CBMP)

The CBMP unites over 50 top broadcasters from 23 countries in the region’s first coordinated media response to the pandemic. The Partnership shares information and resources to expand AIDS-related programming and public education activities across the Caribbean. The CBMP is overseen by a Steering Committee of broadcast executives representing a diverse constituency of media houses and countries from the region, with strategic and technical guidance and production support from the Kaiser Family Foundation. The Ford Foundation and the Elton John AIDS Foundation provide additional financial support. For more information, visit: .

The Unite for Children, Unite Against Aids campaign

The Unite for Children, Unite Against Aids campaignpromotes four key areas: prevention of mother to child transmission of HIV, the virus that causes AIDS; increased access to antiretroviral therapy for children and young people who need treatment; education programmes to help prevent HIV transmission; and increased support for children who are orphaned and left vulnerable by AIDS.