Source: Business Wire

M-A-C spokesperson, Fergie, announced 11 new grants from the M-A-C AIDS Fund (MAF) aimed at preventing the spread of HIV among young people, ages 15-24, who account for nearly half of all new infections. Included in these new grants is Grassroot Soccer’s VIVA YOUTH program, which aims to ehnance HIV prevention through sports initiatives and to accelerate the uptake of counseling and testing in youth.

“Every 15 seconds someone between the ages of 15 and 24 is infected with HIV, and combating the spread of this disease has a lot to do with raising awareness,” said Fergie. “As a musician, I’m able to reach a wider audience about issues close to my heart, and through the VIVA GLAM campaign, I’ve been able to get this message across to youth around the world. I’m so gratified that my lipglass has raised funds to help prevent youth across the globe from contracting HIV.”
The new Youth Initiative grantees will contribute to a new portfolio of programs that reach diverse groups of at-risk youth worldwide. Many of the grant recipients are experimenting with novel and innovative approaches to HIV prevention; some are using MAF’s contribution to extend already successful programs to reach a wider group of youth. As the only Africa-based program among the new grantees, VIVA Youth has three main objectives:

  • To provide VCT for more than 9,000 youth through “Testing Tournaments,” and link anyone who tests positive to treatment and counseling programs.
  • To build capacity of local grassroots and community based organizations to deliver, sustain, and expand sports-based HIV prevention initiatives.
  • To use Grassroot Soccer’s existing partners, projects, and networks, to maximize the value, exposure, and expansion of the project.

“The M-A-C AIDS Fund’s Global Youth Prevention Initiative complements our existing strategy to fund poor, underserved populations who are hardest hit by the epidemic,” said John Demsey, Chairman of the M-A-C AIDS Fund and Group President for EstA(C)e Lauder. “Fergie’s involvement, coupled with M-A-C Cosmetics staff’s passion for the cause and consumer support for our VIVA GLAM products, have allowed the M-A-C AIDS Fund to provide much needed assistance to organizations that will reach the world’s youth with life-changing programs to combat the fight against HIV/AIDS.”