Old Mutual and POPCRU announce partnership to tackle HIV/Aids impact
In recognition of the devastating effects of HIV/Aids in our communities, Old Mutual has joined forces with police union the Police and Prisons Civil Rights Union (POPCRU) to train 30 facilitators who will provide support to communities across the country.
The objective of the Old Mutual and POPCRU Aids initiative is to train facilitators in all nine South African provinces who will go back into their communities and build the capacity of community members to counter the impact of HIV/Aids.
The facilitators will educate fellow union and community members on how to deal with the prevention, stigma and discrimination of HIV/Aids and to provide support to these communities.
These trainees – who will be trained by the facilitators – will, in turn, be able to:
·Build the capacity of other union members through training, guidance and support around HIV/Aids issues on a personal level and within their circles of influence;
·Mobilise different parts of the community to take action in order to limit the impact of the disease. This would be achieved by training other educators.
Speaking at the certification ceremony (of the 30 facilitators) last night, Marshall Rapiya, MD of Old Mutual Retail, said there is no reason for anybody living with HIV/AIDS not to realise their full potential.
“Therefore, it is our mission to equip our stakeholders with the information they need to support all of their affected and infected members. The train-the-trainer workshops hosted by Old Mutual are an initiative we have driven for four years,” said Rapiya.
Rapiya added that through this HIV/Aids initiative, Old Mutual had ensured that people living with HIV/Aids in the communities it served were treated with dignity and that they received the support they needed to live their lives to the full.
Abbey Witbooi, Secretary-General of POPCRU, said: “We are indeed honoured to form part of this initiative with Old Mutual aimed at empowering our members with the necessary skills to fight HIV and AIDS.”
Witbooi added: “We view this partnership as very critical in the entire strategy of ensuring that our people are educated and empowered to deal with the pandemic in a more proactive and sustainable manner. We share the view that more education is needed in dealing with HIV and AIDS.
