Word: botswana
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...African problems. It is one of the safest countries on the continent. It boasts the highest percentage of women in parliament anywhere in the world - 49%. Its rate of HIV infection is at 3% - tiny compared to the figure in other small sub-Saharan African development stars, such as Botswana and Namibia - and all its 35,000 aids sufferers are on antiretroviral drugs. It is investing heavily in education. The government is also tackling overpopulation, which - in that it describes a situation of too many people on not enough land - was an underlying cause of the genocide. In Mayange, outside...
...particular drug company has been a significant player in Botswana: Merck. The U.S. firm created some of the first ARVs capable of treating HIV and AIDS (Crixivan and Stocrin), but has in the past been criticized for its methods of distributing them. In 2004, MSF singled out Merck for reneging on commitments to release the medicines at a cost of less than $1 per person per day. Merck was hurt by such accusations. (According to the firm's website, its founder, George W. Merck, once said: "We try never to forget that medicine is for the people...
...entitled to their own views," he says. "There will always be people who are cynical about big corporations." And yet it is undeniable that Merck's work is saving lives. The ACHAP program has been a stunning success. There are now 30 clinics providing free ARVs and counseling across Botswana, and four more mobile clinics to reach remote areas. More than 7,000 health workers have been trained in treating HIV/AIDS. Of the estimated 110,000 people who need treatment in Botswana, 82,000 receive it - a proportion higher than any other country in sub-Saharan Africa except Rwanda. Mother...
Merck's success in Botswana and similar CSR successes by other companies around the globe raise an interesting question: might businesses be better at aid than traditional NGOs and charities? There's reason to suppose they might be. After all, businesses the size of Merck are capable of marshaling greater medical expertise and more resources than any one NGO, and they are obsessed with results and efficiency...
...acid test is on the ground. Next to a red-dust sports field in the center of Botswana's capital Gaborone, ACHAP conducts HIV tests and performs basic medical examinations in a portable cabin. John Furala Kahindi, 36, is a volunteer who runs packed-out basketball and fitness programs targeted at the young. He works closely with ACHAP. It laid his basketball court - even bringing NBA stars to open it - and in return he funnels his charges to the cabin for regular tests, blood donations and counseling. As a passionate sportsman whose love for the game led him to quit...