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Press Releases New Jersey Commerce CommissionÅs Trade Delegation Visits Two Hiv Community Outreach Sites Supported By The Bristol-Myers Squibb FoundationCARE Organization and Helen Joseph Hospital funded by Secure the Future initiative JOHANNESBURG, SOUTH AFRICA (May 15, 2003) † The business delegation traveling on the New Jersey Commerce & Economic Growth CommissionÅs inaugural Africa trade and investment mission today visited two sites on the front lines of treating the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa. Staff of Bristol-Myers SquibbÅs Secure the Future initiative hosted the delegation at two organizations it supports † the Community AIDS Response (CARE) organization and the Helen Joseph Hospital, as well as led a presentation on the economic impact of HIV/AIDS in Africa. "It is difficult to properly describe the devastation of HIV/AIDS in South Africa," said Commerce Secretary William D. Watley. "However, New JerseyÅs Bristol-Myers Squibb is a making a positive difference on the continent with its Secure the Future program, and this delegation better understands that trading and investing in South Africa will help their businesses back home and provide a needed boost to the local African economy." "Stemming the tide of HIV on the African continent requires the collective efforts of governments, the business community and non-profit organizations from across the globe," said John L. McGoldrick, executive vice president, Bristol-Myers Squibb Company. "We appreciate that Secretary Watley and the business delegation were able to visit two Secure the Future sites and see what Bristol-Myers Squibb is doing to help create local, sustainable, and replicable solutions to fight the pandemic." The New Jersey delegation first visited Helen Joseph Hospital. The hospital, named after one of South AfricaÅs opponents of racial injustice during South AfricaÅs apartheid regime, is home to some of CAREÅs activities. It is a primary referral source for the home-based care program and is supported by doctors and nurses. Voluntary testing, counseling and support group activities take place at the hospitalÅs HIV clinic. Patients prefer to visit this clinic because it is located away from the communities within which they live, lessening the chance of being recognized and the resultant stigma attached to it. For the second stop, Secure the Future staff brought the delegation to CARE, an organization that also receives funding from Bristol-Myers Squibb. CARE supports people living with HIV and AIDS, their families and those who care for them by providing emotional, material, networking, income and skills support through an effective network of professionally trained and supported volunteers and field workers. During the first year of operation, CARE supported 1,498 people who were living with HIV and AIDS, through 10 volunteer counselors, 12 volunteer peer supporters and 5 volunteer professionals † these numbers tripling in its second year. Both CARE and Helen Joseph Hospital in South Africa that form part of a growing network of Secure the Future supported organizations that provide support and care to people infected with and affected by HIV/AIDS in sub-Saharan Africa. Bristol-Myers Squibb and the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation launched Secure the Future in 1999, by pledging an unprecedented $100 million over 5 years to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic in the countries of South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Swaziland and Botswana. In 2001, an additional $15 million was pledged to the West African nations of Senegal, Cote dÅIvoire, Mali and Burkina Faso. Through research and community-based grants, Secure the Future seeks to develop local capacity that will allow local organizations and individuals to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic in a sustainable way. From May 10 - 22, the New Jersey Commerce & Economic Growth Commission is leading a trade and investment mission to the nations of South Africa and Ghana to develop and enhance New Jersey's business relationships with these two free-market nations, both of which have economic needs that match many of New Jersey's economic strengths. Specifically, pharmaceuticals, telecommunications, information technology and transportation infrastructure are among the most promising areas for trade. The New Jersey Commerce & Economic Growth Commission is responsible for business development, attraction and retention, fostering trade and investment, increasing tourism and providing a range of services to small businesses and women- and minority-owned enterprises. Bristol-Myers Squibb is a global pharmaceutical and related health care products company whose mission is to extend and enhance human life.
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