CII to sensitise industry on AIDS

[Guest guest]

CII to sensitise industry on AIDS

Our Regional Bureau / Hyderabad November 12, 2005

The Indian industry in the southern states is fully aware of the

impact the AIDS scourge since the disease is no more seen as a

social or a health issue but some day it is bound to impact as well

as challenge the survival of businesses too.

Statistics reveal that all the southern states – Andhra Pradesh,

Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu – are among the six hardest hit

states in India. About 90 per cent of all AIDS cases are in the

working population of 15-49 years. India with about 5.1 million

people infected with HIV/AIDS constitutes 10 per cent of the total

cases of AIDS in the world.

Recognising the impact that the spread of AIDS can have on the

workforce, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), Southern

Region, will soon launch an industry intervention project in Andhra

Pradesh to sensitise the industry about the spreading AIDS pandemic

and the repercussions it can have on the growth of economy.

This was announced by Prabhat Pani, co-chairman, corporate social

responsibility sub-committee, CII (SR) and CEO, Tata Teleservices

Limited, on the sidelines of a conference held by CII

on `Accelerating the Business Response to HIV/AIDS' organised under

the aegis of Access to Care and Treatment (ACT) here on Friday.

CII is closely working with the India Development Foundation (IDF),

a trust established in 2003 to help policy-makers transform emerging

economies into market-based societies, and India Business Trust

(IBT), established by CII to focus on the HIV/AIDS work.

The intervention project, to be launched in association with AIDS

Prevention and Control (APAC), would be implemented in five stages

comprising sensitising the top management, mass orientation of

workforce, signing of HIV/AIDS policy for industry, training of peer

educators and formation of red ribbon clubs (RRCs) and organising

community events.

A project on similar lines was first launched in Tamil Nadu and

Pondicherry in September 2003 and will be concluded by March 2006.

The overall target is to sensitise 1.5 lakh industry workers

encompassing 150 CII member companies in both places over a period

of 30 months.

" Till date, CII has sensitised 112 CEOs of member companies and 40

industries have signed the HIV/AIDS policy, " said Shefali

Chaturvedi, director, IBT for HIV/AIDS.

Prabhat Pani in his lead presentation on CII-SR initiative on

HIV/AIDS industry intervention project, said, " Apart from the

increased costs due to increased labour and health expenditure,

declining productivity and declining profits, it is projected that

the AIDS pandemic could cause a decline in the GDP of the country by

as much as 17 per cent by 2010. "

An International Labour Organisation (ILO) estimate has put the loss

of workforce due to AIDS at 40 lakh in the next 10 years, double the

present figure of 20 lakh, he said.

The ACT project was started in April 2005 by an NGO consortium as

part of the Round four funding by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS,

earmarked primarily for the treatment, care and support of HIV/AIDS

patients.

The consortium has five other members apart from CII, Population

Foundation of India (PFI), Engender Health (EH), Freedom Foundation

(FF) and the Indian Network of Positive People (INP+). The Global

Fund has committed $4 bn in five rounds of proposals of which 60 per

cent is spent in Africa and 23 per cent in Asia, said Michel

Lavollay, senior advisor, The Global Fund - to fight HIV/AIDS, TB

and malaria.

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