"Enormous" response to World Cup anti-AIDS adverts

Members of Tanzania's national soccer team have used their celebrity status to spread educational messages about HIV/AIDS prevention, to reduce the estimated seven percent infection rate. Population Services International (PSI) and the Tanzania Football Federation (TFF) partnered in producing television and radio adverts aired during the recently concluded World Cup, in which five high-profile team members reinforced the message that condoms are the last line of defence for protection against HIV/AIDS. PSI-Tanzania's executive director, Nils Gade, said the message targeted the roughly 70 percent of the population with access to television during the tournament, compared to just 20-30 percent on ordinary days. "The public response has been enormous. Wherever I go, it is encouraging to find people willing to discuss the threat of the disease openly," said striker Said Maulid, one of the stars of the adverts.