Business pledges more help to fight AIDS in Africa

LONDON, May 22 (Reuters) Four leading companies pledged to to do more in the fight against AIDS in Africa today, in a move designed to spur other corporations into action.

The initiatives come on the heels of rock star Bono's ''Red'' scheme, under which companies with global brands -- from credit cards to clothing -- agree to channel a portion of profits to the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

Executives and policymakers are attending a Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS meeting at Reuters Group Plc headquarters in London to discuss ways to tackle the pandemic, which hasalready killed 25 million people.

A key objective is finding new ways to mobilise resources for the Global Fund, which provides life-saving medicines and money for HIV prevention programmes to developing countries.

Standard Chartered Plc, which has extensive banking operations in Africa, said it was offering to second staff to help countries manage HIV/AIDS projects more efficiently.

International consultancy Accenture is also providing management expertise, while Nike Foundation and Becton Dickinson Co are each giving 200,000 dollars for support programmes.

Companies around the world are becoming increasingly concerned about the impact of AIDS, according to a survey in January by the World Economic Forum, which found 46 per cent expected it to affect their operations in the next five years.

With an estimated 40.3 million people living with HIV/AIDS worldwide and a record 4.9 million new infections last year, the disease has the potential to cripple economies and decimate workforces, hitting the bottom line of many businesses.

Standard Chartered, for example, calculates that more than 10 per cent of its Kenyan employees are off work every day as a result of AIDS, either because they are sick, are caring for relatives or are attending a funeral.

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