ALAFA stands for the Apparel Lesotho Alliance to Fight AIDS. It was launched in Maseru in May 2006 to provide prevention and treatment for the almost 40000 mainly women Basotho workers in the textile and apparel industry. Surveys show that around 40% of employees are HIV positive. ALAFA is an industry-wide programme providing education and prevention, voluntary testing and counselling, and management of AIDS through the roll-out of care and treatment for HIV-positive workers and, since 2009, also their spouses. The project is driven by humanitarian concerns and the need to make the industry sustainable in the long term and protect these key jobs. It is hosted by the Lesotho Textile Exporters Association and supported by both the private sector and international donor agencies. ALAFA received the Drivers of Change Award in the business category in 2008. The project was also commended in the 2009 Business Excellence Awards of the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. Support ALAFA and join our Facebook group. Click here to join. |