KIBERA, Kenya – The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation today announced two new grants totaling US$2 million for Kenyan HIV/AIDS prevention-focused initiatives. William H. Gates, Sr., co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, made the announcement at an HIV/AIDS town forum in Kibera, a community in Nairobi.
Mr. Gates, Sr., and former U.S. President Jimmy Carter, co-founder of the Carter Center, today completed their joint mission to Kenya, South Africa and Nigeria. The mission called attention to the urgent need for comprehensive strategies to fight HIV/AIDS.
"Positive change on HIV/AIDS prevention happens locally, at organizations that are working with and within communities and on university campuses," said Mr. Gates. "These institutions are doing incredibly important work for the people of Kenya, but much more help is needed. With more than 700 new HIV infections in Kenya each day, it is critical that we continue to push forward with innovative prevention, care and support initiatives."
The new Kenya grants announced today are:
- Strengthening STD/AIDS Control in Kenya Project (Universities of Nairobi and Manitoba): A grant of US$1 million over two years will cover three programs jointly run by the Universities of Nairobi and Manitoba. The first program, run by the Kenya Voluntary Women's Rehabilitation Centre (K-VOWRC), provides livelihood options and career training for under-age sex workers in Nairobi. The second program, the STD/AIDS Project, provides prevention counseling and support to sex workers and their clients in Nairobi's poorest communities, including Kibera. The third component is an initiative to establish targeted HIV prevention programs in Meru, the region with one of the highest levels of HIV in Kenya.
- Moi University and Indiana University: The foundation is providing a grant of nearly US$1 million to the Moi University Faculty of Health Sciences (MUFHS). In partnership with the Indiana School of Medicine, the effort will incorporate HIV prevention into the routine clinical, educational, and research activities of Moi University Faculty of Health Sciences. Students will be trained in HIV prevention methods and will work in the local Community-Based Education and Service program.
