HIV/AIDS 'Red Ribbon' Awards handed out in Toronto

[Guest guest]

Contact Information

MEDIA INQUIRIES: Ms. Niamh Collier-, UNDP New York: + 1 212 906

6111 niamh.collier@..., or in Toronto: + 1 917 213 0671.

Broadcast-quality footage of the communities at work in Argentina,

Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Ukraine will be available.

For broadcast-related inquiries, please contact Boaz Paldi, UNDP New

York: e-mail: boaz.paldi@..., +1 917 213 7520.

HIV/AIDS 'Red Ribbon' Awards handed out in Toronto

Five local communities from around the world were honoured here with

the newly created Red Ribbon Awards for their outstanding

contributions to the frontline response to HIV and AIDS.

UNAIDS Special Representative HRH the Crown Princess Mette-Marit of

Norway presented the award for best practice in overcoming women's

inequality to Zimbabwe's Girl Child Network, which counsels and

supports girls in rural areas, including victims of sexual abuse.

The Girl Child Network was joined on the honours list by a Ukrainian

lobbying group that works with public institutions to combat

discrimination, secure treatment and organize support for people

living with HIV/AIDS; a Thai organization that successfully

campaigned to bring anti-retroviral treatment into the country's

public-health system; a youth-led network of communities in Zambia

that sews school uniforms for AIDS orphans; and a Bangladeshi

project to educate, protect and advocate for sex workers and their

families.

The 2006 Red Ribbon Award winners, by category, are:

1. Providing access to care, treatment and support for people

living with HIV/AIDS:

Thai Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, Thailand

2. Addressing stigma and discrimination related to HIV/AIDS:

The All Ukrainian Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, Ukraine

3. Addressing gender inequalities that fuel the HIV/AIDS

epidemic: The Girl Child Network, Zimbabwe

4. Promoting HIV/AIDS prevention programmes: Durjoy Nari

Shongo, Bangladesh

5. Providing support to children orphaned by AIDS and other

vulnerable children: Mboole Rural Development, Zambia

Nearly 600 communities around the world were nominated for the

Award. Through a rigorous review process, a committee of 50

international HIV and AIDS experts identified the top 25 candidates,

who were invited to attend the AIDS 2006 conference.

An international jury that included the Norwegian Crown Princess,

nominee Naomi Watts, former President of Ireland

and pioneering doctor Farmer whittled the 25 finalists down to

five, one in each award category.

" The Red Ribbon Award is a great opportunity to bring communities

together that have fought this disease, " said Kemal Dervis, United

Nations Development Programme Administrator. " Sometimes they work in

extremely difficult situations, in contexts of war or extreme

poverty, and yet they have found ways despite these obstacles to

make things happen, to generate some real success on the ground. "

" You know the challenges, the many disappointments, the small and

large victories that come with AIDS prevention work on the ground

and it is thanks to the work of people like you that we already can

see some successes in fighting AIDS in certain countries, " said

UNAIDS Special Representative HRH the Crown Princess Mette-Marit of

Norway, speaking at the award ceremony.

The Crown Princess presented the Red Ribbon Award for best practice

in overcoming women's inequality to Zimbabwe's Girl Child Network,

which counsels and supports girls in rural areas, including victims

of sexual abuse. "

Each of the five winners receives US$20,000 in prize money, while

the other 20 finalist communities are each awarded US$5,000. The

checks will be presented to the finalists on World AIDS Day, 1

December 2006.

The Red Ribbon Award, making its debut this week in Toronto, will

henceforth be presented every two years at the International AIDS

Conference. It provides a unique opportunity to support and

publicize the most outstanding and least recognized experts in the

global effort to stop the epidemic.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is leading the Red

Ribbon Award, working in partnership with UNAIDS, the Community and

Leadership Program Committees of the XVI International AIDS

Conference and the governments of Canada, Norway, Austria, Finland

and Ireland. Other partners include Care International and UNESCO.

More details of the real-life stories of these communities and the

challenges they face in responding to the HIV epidemic are available

at: http://www.redribbonaward.org.

[Guest guest]

Contact Information

MEDIA INQUIRIES: Ms. Niamh Collier-, UNDP New York: + 1 212 906

6111 niamh.collier@..., or in Toronto: + 1 917 213 0671.

Broadcast-quality footage of the communities at work in Argentina,

Bangladesh, China, Ethiopia, Rwanda, and Ukraine will be available.

For broadcast-related inquiries, please contact Boaz Paldi, UNDP New

York: e-mail: boaz.paldi@..., +1 917 213 7520.

HIV/AIDS 'Red Ribbon' Awards handed out in Toronto

Five local communities from around the world were honoured here with

the newly created Red Ribbon Awards for their outstanding

contributions to the frontline response to HIV and AIDS.

UNAIDS Special Representative HRH the Crown Princess Mette-Marit of

Norway presented the award for best practice in overcoming women's

inequality to Zimbabwe's Girl Child Network, which counsels and

supports girls in rural areas, including victims of sexual abuse.

The Girl Child Network was joined on the honours list by a Ukrainian

lobbying group that works with public institutions to combat

discrimination, secure treatment and organize support for people

living with HIV/AIDS; a Thai organization that successfully

campaigned to bring anti-retroviral treatment into the country's

public-health system; a youth-led network of communities in Zambia

that sews school uniforms for AIDS orphans; and a Bangladeshi

project to educate, protect and advocate for sex workers and their

families.

The 2006 Red Ribbon Award winners, by category, are:

1. Providing access to care, treatment and support for people

living with HIV/AIDS:

Thai Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, Thailand

2. Addressing stigma and discrimination related to HIV/AIDS:

The All Ukrainian Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS, Ukraine

3. Addressing gender inequalities that fuel the HIV/AIDS

epidemic: The Girl Child Network, Zimbabwe

4. Promoting HIV/AIDS prevention programmes: Durjoy Nari

Shongo, Bangladesh

5. Providing support to children orphaned by AIDS and other

vulnerable children: Mboole Rural Development, Zambia

Nearly 600 communities around the world were nominated for the

Award. Through a rigorous review process, a committee of 50

international HIV and AIDS experts identified the top 25 candidates,

who were invited to attend the AIDS 2006 conference.

An international jury that included the Norwegian Crown Princess,

nominee Naomi Watts, former President of Ireland

and pioneering doctor Farmer whittled the 25 finalists down to

five, one in each award category.

" The Red Ribbon Award is a great opportunity to bring communities

together that have fought this disease, " said Kemal Dervis, United

Nations Development Programme Administrator. " Sometimes they work in

extremely difficult situations, in contexts of war or extreme

poverty, and yet they have found ways despite these obstacles to

make things happen, to generate some real success on the ground. "

" You know the challenges, the many disappointments, the small and

large victories that come with AIDS prevention work on the ground

and it is thanks to the work of people like you that we already can

see some successes in fighting AIDS in certain countries, " said

UNAIDS Special Representative HRH the Crown Princess Mette-Marit of

Norway, speaking at the award ceremony.

The Crown Princess presented the Red Ribbon Award for best practice

in overcoming women's inequality to Zimbabwe's Girl Child Network,

which counsels and supports girls in rural areas, including victims

of sexual abuse. "

Each of the five winners receives US$20,000 in prize money, while

the other 20 finalist communities are each awarded US$5,000. The

checks will be presented to the finalists on World AIDS Day, 1

December 2006.

The Red Ribbon Award, making its debut this week in Toronto, will

henceforth be presented every two years at the International AIDS

Conference. It provides a unique opportunity to support and

publicize the most outstanding and least recognized experts in the

global effort to stop the epidemic.

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) is leading the Red

Ribbon Award, working in partnership with UNAIDS, the Community and

Leadership Program Committees of the XVI International AIDS

Conference and the governments of Canada, Norway, Austria, Finland

and Ireland. Other partners include Care International and UNESCO.

More details of the real-life stories of these communities and the

challenges they face in responding to the HIV epidemic are available

at: http://www.redribbonaward.org.