Chiefs to support anti-AIDS drive

The 12 traditional chiefs of Burkina Faso's Sahel region have expressed their commitment to spreading HIV/AIDS awareness among their people, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) said in a statement this week. At a gathering in the northeast provincial capital of Dori earlier this month, the Emir of Liptako - the region's paramount chief - formally received a translation into the local language, Fulfulde, of the National Human Development Report 2001 on HIV/AIDS. Representatives of the National AIDS Council and UNAIDS took part in the ceremony. "We hope that with your help, the contents of the report will be made available to the maximum number of people who read and understand the local language and to those who can disseminate its message as widely as possible in the region," UNDP Resident Representative Christian Lemaire told the chiefs. The Emir declared: "The choice of traditional chiefs as key leaders for the fight against HIV/AIDS is significant, and we are grateful to UNDP. The chiefs are aware of the terrible consequences of the epidemic, and therefore we are making the commitment to bring the report's message to every household in the region." The chiefs will disseminate the report throughout the region, and people who are literate will reach those unable to read through debates, conferences, drama and traditional caravans, he said. According to UNAIDS, Burkina Faso is one of the West African countries hardest hit by the epidemic, with nearly 7 percent of those between 15 and 49 infected, and young women are five to eight times more likely to become infected than young men.