A foundation for Africa’s children

There are many reasons why we should start a foundation and engage ourselves socially. But why a foundation for Africa’s children?

Sub-Saharan Africa is  the continent currently most adversely affected by the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Out of the 40 million infected individuals worldwide, approximately 25 million live in Sub-Saharan Africa -  and the numbers are still increasing. According to UNAIDS, one in every 11 adults in the region – one in three in some countries – is infected with HIV. In 2006 alone, approx. 3 million people in the region contracted HIV, accounting for 65 % of the world’s new infections^[1].  It is estimated that Africa will have 18 million HIV/AIDS related orphans by 2010.

There is no such thing as the ‘African’ epidemic; there is tremendous diversity across the continent in the levels and trends of HIV infection. In six countries, adult HIV prevalence is below 2%, while in six other countries it is over 20%. In southern Africa all seven countries have prevalence rates above 17% with Botswana and Swaziland having prevalence above 35%.

After a trip to Botswana in May 2003 the impact of the epidemic, that is hardly to be grasped in Europe, became apparent to it’s full extent and led to the founding of the Capricorn foundation.

Botswana is a vast, arid, beautiful country, of which few have heard and if so only because of its legendary Okavango Delta and Kalahari Desert. It is as large as France with a population of only 1.5 million people. It is one of Africa’s most politically stable countries combined with a strong and growing economy which is mainly due to its natural diamond resources. However, Botswana suffers the world’s highest infection rate, with HIV prevalence being at 38.5%.

Despite the stable political environment and the comparatively high per-capita income, the Government of Botswana has not been able achieve visible results in its fight against the pandemic. The endeavours to generate awareness, provide testing and counselling as well as free medical treatment (ARVs) have not been successful in curbing the rate of infection. This is mainly due to stigmatization, unchanged sexual behaviour patterns and the fear to deal with the illness.

The resulting social problems always affect the weakest in the line – the children. They lose their parents to an illness they generally know little or nothing about and are handed along in the extended families form Uncle to Aunt until these too fall prey to the illness and only the grandparents are left. A grandparent may be confronted with rearing 10 – 15 children, an impossible task even with the help of food and cloth baskets the Government provides.

The children are traumatized due to losing their parents and can often not follow along in school and drop out, are abused both economically and sexually by their foster parents and run away from home, to a life in the streets losing every sense of orientation and belonging. The food and clothes baskets provided by the Government are frequently misappropriated by the extended family for the benefit of their own offspring or sold to improve their own financial situation.

Projections for Botswana indicate that by 2010 half of the productive population will have died due to the epidemic and the remainder will include up to 200,000 orphans.

To provide a future to the country and most of all to its children we have started this foundation to participate in local projects. The main goal is to provide children with a safe home and education that will be the basis their future.

The Government of Botswana is very active in providing education to its pupils and students, however it has not provided for its orphans in an integrated system so far, even though the children are the only future in a very small population.

The scope of the foundation is not limited to Botswana but we will begin there and expand to other countries in the region.