Map of "Africa AIDS Prevalence as of 2008" - Image from Wikimedia Commons

April 29, 2010: After years of neglecting its AIDS crisis, South Africa is launching a massive effort to provide testing, prevention, and treatment services to its citizens. An estimated 5.7 million South Africans are HIV-positive, the most of any country.

According to The New York Times, on Sunday, April 25, President Jacob Zuma unveiled an initiative to test 15 million of the nation's 49 million people for the virus by June 2011. In scale and timeframe, South Africa's anti-AIDS campaign marks the most monumental attempt by any nation to stem the scourge, say United Nations officials. The government plans to test for HIV all patients who enter the nation's public health system. Because South Africa is short of physicians, it will train thousands of nurses to dispense AIDS drugs. It will also broaden access to drugs for HIV-positive pregnant women and babies.

To help prevent HIV, President Zuma announced that male circumcision, which the World Health Organization suggests can half a man's risk of getting HIV, will be offered nationwide in 2011.

SOS Children's Villages in South Africa Giving Hope to AIDS Orphans

South Africa's children have been profoundly affected by the nation's HIV/AIDS pandemic. SOS Children's Villages has been providing loving homes to the nation's vulnerable children for nearly 30 years. With eight SOS Children's Villages and a complement of youth facilities, schools, clinics, and counselling centers, SOS provides practical assistance for children and families devastated by HIV/AIDS.

SOS believes that every child should grow up in a family with love, respect, and care. SOS provides family-based care for children without parental care. SOS children affected by AIDS are well fed and clothed and are given the medical attention they deserve. In their own communities they often face stigma and discrimination. SOS treats them like the precious children they are.

Offering Concrete Help to AIDS-Affected Families

Children wait for playtime on a stoop at SOS Children's Villages - Port Elizabeth, South Africa

SOS's philosophy is based on the principle that children should remain with their biological families whenever possible. In addition to raising AIDS orphans, SOS also offers advice, free tests, and drug treatment to families affected by AIDS, with the goal of keeping households intact and able to care for their children.

You can help a South African boy or girl in need of love and a warm home. Give the gift of HIV/AIDS prevention in South Africa for as little as $25.