Ford Foundation and Elton John AIDS Foundation join Caribbean broadcasters and the Kaiser Family Foundation to advance the Caribbean Broadcast Media Partnership on HIV / AIDS as part of a global mobilization of media. Partnership includes regional PSA campaign HIV-themed programming and other informational resources.

Today the Ford Foundation and Elton John AIDS Foundation announced they would be joining the Kaiser Family Foundation in together providing one million USD to support the operations of the Caribbean Broadcast Media Partnership on HIV/AIDS the regions first media-led initiative on HIV/AIDS. Kaiser which helped initiate and create the Partnership will also provide ongoing operational and public health expertise. The Partnership -- which responds to U.N. Secretary General Kofi Annans call-to-action to media under the Global Media AIDS Initiative (GMAI) -- promotes collaboration and leverages resources among media in the region with the goal of expanding AIDS programming. The Caribbean region has the highest HIV/AIDS prevalence rate in the world outside sub-Saharan Africa. According to the latest UNAIDS statistics AIDS is now the leading cause of death among adults in the region ages 15-44 years. Stigma and homophobia have been identified as major contributors to the spread of HIV/AIDS in the region. (excerpt)