AFRICA: De Beers commended for HIV/AIDS programme at US awards gala

JOHANNESBURG, 30 Sep 2005 (PLUSNEWS) - The De Beers Group was recognised for its HIV/AIDS workplace efforts in Sub-Saharan Africa at the Global Business Coalition (GBC) HIV/AIDS Awards for Business Excellence Gala in Washington, in the US, on Wednesday.

De Beers was commended for managing the HIV/AIDS epidemic by providing a comprehensive workplace response that included voluntary counselling and testing (VCT) services for all De Beers employees, their spouses, contractors, and often also extended to community members, the Sunday Times reported.

Former UN ambassador Richard Holbrooke said, "The companies we are honouring have stepped forward to make a difference in the fight against AIDS, [which is] everyone's problem and every company's responsibility," and added that "they are inspiring examples of how the business community can harness its power to help curb this global pandemic."

Jonathan Oppenheimer, managing director of De Beers, observed, "Looking back on the milestones reached in the De Beers HIV/AIDS workplace programme, our sense of accomplishment is coupled with a growing understanding that the boundary between company and community is an artificial and tenuous distinction when it comes to combating a disease of the magnitude of AIDS."

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