New media and technologies pave the way for the future of HIV prevention
Stellenbosch/Geneva, 2 May 2011 - The Joint United Nations
Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) and Stellenbosch University have brought together technology leaders, AIDS activists, social
media experts and young people to discuss how social media and mobile technologies can be leveraged for HIV prevention.
The event, which is taking place at the Stellenbosch University in South Africa, is being held to find new ways
of reaching young people with information about how to prevent HIV. This is particularly important at a time when globally
only 1 in 3 young people have complete knowledge of how HIV is transmitted and 7000 people are becoming newly infected each day.
"We must engage young people in defining the prevention interventions that work for them," said UNAIDS
Executive Director Michel Sidibé. "The potential of social media and mobile technologies to re-energize the AIDS movement
is clear. We need nothing less than an HIV prevention revolution, with social media and mobile technology at its core."
The Internet and social media are widely used around the world, particularly by young people. Data released
recently by the International Telecommunications Union (ITU) shows that there are 333 million mobile telephone users in
Africa and 77 million Internet users. Nigeria alone has 44 million people connected to the Internet.
Social media and mobile technology can be used effectively to raise awareness about HIV and provide correct
information on HIV prevention. They also lend themselves to facilitating peer-to-peer education and discussions about HIV
and creating social movements calling for action.
"The point where social media and mobile technology converge with innovation is where we need to focus our
collective efforts in the HIV prevention response to ensure that our young people are not left behind in our endeavour to
halt the spread of this epidemic," said Prof. Jan du Toit, Director of the African Centre for HIV/AIDS Management at
Stellenbosch University.
The discussions are being livestreamed and will include question and answer sessions via Facebook
at www.facebook.com/unaids and on Twitter (@UNAIDS).
"Effective use of social media and mobile technology in this field will bring hope to a generation whose
future continues to be threatened by HIV," said Prof. Russel Botman, Rector and Vice-Chancellor of Stellenbosch University.
The event is part of UNAIDS' strategy to inspire and catalyze young people to use social media to ignite an HIV
prevention revolution. It forms part of a series of events taking place in and around Cape Town and Stellenbosch on the
occasion of the first meeting of the UNAIDS High Level Commission on HIV Prevention. Other events include a meeting
of a new generation of AIDS activists with the HIV prevention commission on Robben Island on 3 May and a condom
march, led by the Treatment Action Campaign, on 4 May in Khayelitsha.
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Contact
UNAIDS Johannesburg
Bathsheba Okwenje
tel. +27 82 909 2638
okwenjeb@unaids.org
UNAIDS Geneva
Sophie Barton-Knott
tel. +41 22 791 1697
bartonknotts@unaids.org
Source:
UNAIDS
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