FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: |
CONTACT:
|
Bill
Barker |
|
April 5, 2000 |
|
(202) 419-3420 |
President of
Advocates for Youth Travels to Africa to Study HIV/AIDS
Crisis
Thousands of African Young People Infected
With HIV Each Day
WASHINGTON, DC (April 5, 2000) Citing the fact that sub-Saharan Africa
has one of the highest HIV infection rates in the world, James Wagoner,
President of Advocates for Youth, travels to Burkina Faso, Nigeria and
South Africa today to join other organizations in fighting this epidemic.
"With five young people worldwide contracting HIV/AIDS every minute
of every day, and one young person per minute in Nigeria alone, it is
critical that young people get the sexuality information and services
they need to prevent further spread of this disease," said Wagoner.
Wagoner begins his two-week study tour with site visits to Mwangaza,
Advocates for Youth's partner organization in Burkina Faso, as well as
to various other African youth serving organizations working to slow
the spread of HIV/AIDS and to improve the reproductive health of young
people. The various projects work to educate and mobilize communities
to develop solutions to the complex sexual and reproductive health problems
facing youth.
"Ignorance is nobody's ally in the era of AIDS. Denying young people
the critical information and services they need to protect their health
and save their lives is not only unrealistic and naïve, but irresponsible
and dangerous," said Wagoner.
Advocates for Youth, in collaboration with various organizations, has
worked for the past 20 years to make reproductive health information
and services, including contraceptives, more accessible to adolescents
in Nigeria, Ghana, and other sub-Saharan African countries, through peer
education and capacity building of youth-serving organizations.
"With the vast majority of adolescents worldwide becoming sexually
active before the age of 20, with 15 million teen births each year, and
half of all new HIV infections worldwide occurring in young people under
the age of 25, we need realistic policies and actions that protect young
people's health and lives," said Wagoner.
Advocates for Youth is an international, nonprofit organization that
creates programs and supports policies that help young people make safe,
responsible decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.
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Note
to Editors and Producers: For more information or to set
up an interview with adolescent sexuality experts, please contact
Bill Barker at (202) 419-3420.
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