Information service of the Pontifical Mission Societies since 1927
Johannesburg (Agenzia Fides) - “This event honors the commitment and success of the Catholic Church in caring for the world’s largest population of people with HIV,” said CRS (Catholic Relief Services) South Africa Country Representative Ruth Stark, during a ceremony that took place in Johannesburg. The “event” she refers to is the transferring of the program AIDSRelief of the CRS into the hands of the Southern African Catholic Bishops’ Conference (SACBC – Bishops of South Africa, Botswana, and Swaziland).
AIDSRelief provides care and assistance for over 60,000 people in the three southern African nations, where the highest level of HIV patients is registered. The program is financed by the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), whose funds are sent to South Africa by CRS.
“We are proud of and grateful to the people on the ground, recognizing that the work of providing treatment services and care for children happens at local level. It is there that the dedication and commitment of project staff, professional and untrained, rising to unbelievable challenges, often in quite difficult circumstances, is played out over and over. The commitment and hard work of care givers and project personnel is what holds it altogether,” said Sr. Alison Munro, Head of the Office for AIDS of the SACBC.
In her speech, Sr. Alison recalled the history of the last 10 years of the AIDS Office of the Southern African Bishops' Conference, which has the task of coordinating the efforts of the Catholic Church in South Africa, Botswana, and Swaziland in favor of those who suffer from the disease. The religious sister also highlighted that the Church in South Africa receives aid in this work from other Catholic organizations as well: Cordaid (Holland), Trocaire (Ireland), and Cafod (England and Wales).
The program is mainly directed towards children and is still only a “drop of water in the ocean.” But, as Sr. Alison recalled, “the ripple effect is impossible to measure.” Thanks to the free distribution of antiretroviral medicine, the majority of the people in the program survive and are able to live their lives with a greater dignity. (LM) (Agenzia Fides 8/2/2010)
