Chevron partners with four other companies to help reduce HIV transmissions between mothers and children in three African nations.
Chevron announced at the 2012 International AIDS Conference that a business partnership will work to combat mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Nigeria, Angola and South Africa.
“We must intensify our collective efforts to meet the serious challenges to eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV head-on,” said Rhonda Zygocki, executive vice president of policy and planning for Chevron.
The following are some stats on HIV rates in Nigeria, South Africa and Angola:
- In Nigeria, approximately 75,000 babies are born with HIV each year, mosstly due to transmission from their mothers.
- In South Africa, approximately 30% of pregnant women were HIV-positive in 2009.
- In Angola, about 15% of the country’s HIV cases are caused by mother-to-child transmission.
Zygocki said Chevron has been finding strategic partners with expertise to address the issues facing Nigeria, Angola and South Africa to make an HIV-free generation by 2015. So far, the partnership includes Pact, the Business Leadership Council, mothers2mothers and the Global Fund.
This partnership is part of the $20 million commitment made by Chevron in June 2011 at the United Nations High Level Meeting on AIDS to support the global plan to eliminate new HIV infections among children by 2015 and keep their mothers alive.
Chevron is one of the world’s leading integrated energy companies with subsidiaries across the world. The company is based in San Ramon, Calif., and operates more than 400 stores.
