Chinese media group to raise HIV awareness in Africa

UNAIDS on Friday established a partnership with StarTimes, a leading Chinese digital TV operator in Africa, to help disseminate information about HIV/AIDS prevention in the continent.

The two organizations signed a memorandum of understanding to jointly increase awareness of HIV and reduce discrimination against people living with HIV across the broadcast networks of StarTimes that are available throughout the African continent.

Michel Sidibe, UNAIDS executive director, said a major challenge for UNAIDS is to promote HIV testing, as 40 percent of HIV positive people do not even know they are infected.

Sidibe said China can play a key role in combating HIV/AIDS in Africa, such as helping Africa produce vaccines and other medicine.

Sidibe is in Beijing to attend the Belt and Road forum, which will be held on Sunday and Monday.

Huang Xiaoming, a Chinese movie star and Goodwill Ambassador of UNAIDS China, also attended the Friday event.

Huang told the Global Times that he was touched by China’s First Lady Peng Liyuan’s work in combating HIV/AIDS and considers her as his role model.

Peng is the WHO Goodwill Ambassador for Tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS and has for years been devoted to raising awareness about the epidemic.

StarTimes is a Chinese digital TV operator that has 10 million subscribers in Africa.

Pang Xinxing, president of the StarTimes Group, said the company is also committed to helping 10,000 African villages gain access to digital TV by the end of 2018.