">Hiv Information | World Cup Aids Initiative

<img src="http://www.observer.org.sz/files/banners/tholakele.gif" title="Hiv Information | World Cup Aids Initiative

” />
Sections News Sports › Weekend Fixtures Business Entertainment Pictures Community News Gamassaulting : TRAFFIC FINES GO UP Should Traffic Fines Go Up? Home News WORLD CUP AIDS INITIATIVE 12 May, 2010 10:00:00 By James Hall Font size: By now readers are aware that next month’s FIFA World Cup in neighbouring South Africa is much more than soccer. 
It is about promoting Southern Africa in a positive manner, for future tourism and investment, and about grasping the once in a lifetime opportunity to build new facilities from sporting to roads.
It is also an opportunity to promote public health.  A tie-in to the World Cup generates immediate interest for any project, and this week an AIDS awareness initiative was launched called Africa Goal 2010.
According to the Southern Africa HIV and AIDS Information Dissemination Service (SAfAIDS), “The project will harnesses the potential of the FIFA World Cup as a platform for HIV Information Dissemination.”
It was launched in Zimbabwe a few days ago.
According to SAfAIDS, crowds gathered to watch World Cup matches will come in contact with health information.
By screening live World Cup matches on a large screen in rural areas throughout the Eastern and Southern African region, an area heavily affected by AIDS, and combining this with the dissemination of HIV information, Africa Goal aims to share behaviour change information with traditionally "hard to reach" groups in an effective and memorable way,” said a SAfAIDS spokeswoman.
The Africa Goal project was begun four years ago, during the 2006 World Cup. 
A team of nine volunteers travelled from Kenya to Namibia and back, projecting soccer matches and disseminating HIV information to remote communities. It worked well, and is happening again, starting soon.
This year’s African Goal Team is made up of 10 members. 
During the dates of the 2010 Soccer Showcase the team plans to travel through Kenya, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique before arriving in Swaziland before the team’s final destination of South Africa.
At this week’s launch, partnering parties included youth groups, business leaders, diplomats, media practitioners and representatives of AIDS service organisations.  They met at the National Gallery in Harare to witness

Click here to for more