RECIPIENTS OF 2008 MTV STAYING ALIVE FOUNDATION AWARDS
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, 17 June 2008:
R&B singer-songwriter and MTV Staying Alive Special Ambassador, Kelly Rowland, and Georgia Arnold, Senior Vice President, Social Responsibility, MTV Networks International and Executive Director, Staying Alive Foundation, today announced the Tanzanian recipients of the 2008 Staying Alive Foundation Awards.
Rowland, a multi-platinum selling artist and founder member of the greatest female group of all time in the history of music, Destiny’s Child, revealed the 2008 grantees at a press conference at the Kilimanjaro Hotel Kempinski, Dar es Salaam during her trip this week to visit Tanzanian projects and grantees funded by the MTV Staying Alive Foundation. The global charity’s mission is to encourage and enable/support young people who are involved in HIV and AIDS awareness, education and prevention campaigns.
Staying Alive Foundation Awards are presented to individuals or groups who are relentless in their mission to encourage, educate and empower their peers in the fight against HIV and AIDS. Each Staying Alive Grant recipient receives a cash grant from the Staying Alive Foundation to enable them to realise a project associated with raising the awareness about HIV/AIDS. The Tanzanian recipients of the 2008 Staying Alive Foundation Awards are:
· ELIZABETH YOUTH GROUP – First time grantees Elizabeth Youth Group is a project led by Eliza, a young HIV+ Tanzanian woman. Eliza, an ex-sex worker, now dedicates her life to working with high-risk youth such as sex workers and drug users, educating and empowering them with information about HIV/AIDS. Over the next 12 months, the project will educate 100 young people to become peer educators, hold two workshops on HIV, organise screenings of the documentary on Eliza’s life and organise two drama presentations, a concert and a music show to mark World AIDS Day.
· TAYOPA – Kelly will also be meeting with TAYOPA, who received their Staying Alive Foundation grant in December 2007. TAYOPA is an organisation set up in Dar es Salaam by HIV+ youth who use drama, music and storytelling to inform young people about HIV.
Kelly Rowland praised the commitment and dedication of the 2008 Grant recipients, and also took the opportunity to make an impassioned plea for Tanzanian youth to recognize the importance of HIV testing in limiting the spread of new infections.
Commented Rowland, ‘All the 2008 Staying Alive grantees should be proud of the vital function they fulfill in their communities by helping to raise the awareness about HIV/AIDS. By stressing the importance of prevention, raising awareness about the basic issues surrounding HIV and AIDS and reducing stigma associated with infection they are taking direct action to help stop the spread of the disease.’
‘If more young people would take the simple step of getting tested for HIV as soon as it appears that they are at risk, then it would help to reduce the spread of HIV infection,’ added Rowland. ‘HIV tests in Tanzania are free and take just a few minutes. Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to HIV infection, and it is important for everyone to know their HIV status. The quicker you know your status, the sooner you can receive treatment if you’re HIV+, and reduce the risk of inadvertently infecting future partners.’
Commented Georgia Arnold, ‘We are delighted that Kelly Rowland has been able to join us in Tanzania to witness and highlight the courageous and important work of groups like TAYOPA and the Elizabeth Youth Group. It is thanks to innovative grassroots projects such as these - and the impressive young people involved in them - that we can help turn the tide against the spread of HIV and AIDS.’
During her trip to East Africa, Kelly Rowland and the MTV Staying Alive Foundation have visited a number of projects run by Staying Alive Foundation grantees. Stops on the tour have included an eye opening visit to Hyena Square, Dar es Salaam with the founder of the Elizabeth Youth Group, and an uplifting trip to TAYOPA to witness one of their street theatre presentations.
Ms Rowland was appointed as the public face of Staying Alive in April 2008, promising to dedicate herself to raising the profile of the global charitable foundation, whose mission is to empower young people who are protecting themselves and their communities against HIV and AIDS.
Details of Kelly Rowland’s trip to Tanzania will be included in Kelly Rowland – Diary, airing on MTV channels around the world on World Aids Day (1 December 2008). Excerpts from her visit to East Africa including her trip to visit Hyena Square in Dar es Salaam, and her experiences at a HIV testing centre in Nairobi, will also be available online on a special microsite, www.kellyrowlandafrica.com, from 23 June 2008.
-ENDS-
ABOUT THE MTV STAYING ALIVE FOUNDATION
Founded in 1994, The MTV Staying Alive Foundation is a global public charity operating in affiliation with MTV Networks International. Its mission is to empower and support young people who are protecting themselves and their communities against HIV and AIDS. The Foundation donates money and provides grants to youth-led initiatives committed to educating their peers about HIV and AIDS. It is dedicated to fighting stigma and discrimination and empowering young people to protect themselves against the disease. For more information log onto www.staying-alive.org/foundation.
ABOUT MTV NETWORKS INTERNATIONAL
MTV Networks International includes the premier multimedia entertainment brands MTV: Music Television, VH1, Nickelodeon, TMF (The Music Factory), VIVA, Flux, Paramount Comedy, Comedy Central, Game One, Neopets, GameTrailers, Shockwave, Addicting Games, Atom Films and Xfire. MTV Networks' brands are seen globally in 560 million households in 162 countries and 33 languages via more than 150 locally programmed and operated TV channels and more than 350 digital media properties. The company's diverse holdings also include interests in television syndication, digital media, publishing, home video, radio, recorded music, licensing & merchandising and two feature film divisions, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. MTV Networks is a unit of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B).
For further information, images or interview requests please contact:
Christine Mosha
MTV Networks Africa
Email: mosha.christine@mtvne.com
Cell: 0754 000907
Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, 17 June 2008:
R&B singer-songwriter and MTV Staying Alive Special Ambassador, Kelly Rowland, and Georgia Arnold, Senior Vice President, Social Responsibility, MTV Networks International and Executive Director, Staying Alive Foundation, today announced the Tanzanian recipients of the 2008 Staying Alive Foundation Awards.
Rowland, a multi-platinum selling artist and founder member of the greatest female group of all time in the history of music, Destiny’s Child, revealed the 2008 grantees at a press conference at the Kilimanjaro Hotel Kempinski, Dar es Salaam during her trip this week to visit Tanzanian projects and grantees funded by the MTV Staying Alive Foundation. The global charity’s mission is to encourage and enable/support young people who are involved in HIV and AIDS awareness, education and prevention campaigns.
Staying Alive Foundation Awards are presented to individuals or groups who are relentless in their mission to encourage, educate and empower their peers in the fight against HIV and AIDS. Each Staying Alive Grant recipient receives a cash grant from the Staying Alive Foundation to enable them to realise a project associated with raising the awareness about HIV/AIDS. The Tanzanian recipients of the 2008 Staying Alive Foundation Awards are:
· ELIZABETH YOUTH GROUP – First time grantees Elizabeth Youth Group is a project led by Eliza, a young HIV+ Tanzanian woman. Eliza, an ex-sex worker, now dedicates her life to working with high-risk youth such as sex workers and drug users, educating and empowering them with information about HIV/AIDS. Over the next 12 months, the project will educate 100 young people to become peer educators, hold two workshops on HIV, organise screenings of the documentary on Eliza’s life and organise two drama presentations, a concert and a music show to mark World AIDS Day.
· TAYOPA – Kelly will also be meeting with TAYOPA, who received their Staying Alive Foundation grant in December 2007. TAYOPA is an organisation set up in Dar es Salaam by HIV+ youth who use drama, music and storytelling to inform young people about HIV.
Kelly Rowland praised the commitment and dedication of the 2008 Grant recipients, and also took the opportunity to make an impassioned plea for Tanzanian youth to recognize the importance of HIV testing in limiting the spread of new infections.
Commented Rowland, ‘All the 2008 Staying Alive grantees should be proud of the vital function they fulfill in their communities by helping to raise the awareness about HIV/AIDS. By stressing the importance of prevention, raising awareness about the basic issues surrounding HIV and AIDS and reducing stigma associated with infection they are taking direct action to help stop the spread of the disease.’
‘If more young people would take the simple step of getting tested for HIV as soon as it appears that they are at risk, then it would help to reduce the spread of HIV infection,’ added Rowland. ‘HIV tests in Tanzania are free and take just a few minutes. Ignorance is not bliss when it comes to HIV infection, and it is important for everyone to know their HIV status. The quicker you know your status, the sooner you can receive treatment if you’re HIV+, and reduce the risk of inadvertently infecting future partners.’
Commented Georgia Arnold, ‘We are delighted that Kelly Rowland has been able to join us in Tanzania to witness and highlight the courageous and important work of groups like TAYOPA and the Elizabeth Youth Group. It is thanks to innovative grassroots projects such as these - and the impressive young people involved in them - that we can help turn the tide against the spread of HIV and AIDS.’
During her trip to East Africa, Kelly Rowland and the MTV Staying Alive Foundation have visited a number of projects run by Staying Alive Foundation grantees. Stops on the tour have included an eye opening visit to Hyena Square, Dar es Salaam with the founder of the Elizabeth Youth Group, and an uplifting trip to TAYOPA to witness one of their street theatre presentations.
Ms Rowland was appointed as the public face of Staying Alive in April 2008, promising to dedicate herself to raising the profile of the global charitable foundation, whose mission is to empower young people who are protecting themselves and their communities against HIV and AIDS.
Details of Kelly Rowland’s trip to Tanzania will be included in Kelly Rowland – Diary, airing on MTV channels around the world on World Aids Day (1 December 2008). Excerpts from her visit to East Africa including her trip to visit Hyena Square in Dar es Salaam, and her experiences at a HIV testing centre in Nairobi, will also be available online on a special microsite, www.kellyrowlandafrica.com, from 23 June 2008.
-ENDS-
ABOUT THE MTV STAYING ALIVE FOUNDATION
Founded in 1994, The MTV Staying Alive Foundation is a global public charity operating in affiliation with MTV Networks International. Its mission is to empower and support young people who are protecting themselves and their communities against HIV and AIDS. The Foundation donates money and provides grants to youth-led initiatives committed to educating their peers about HIV and AIDS. It is dedicated to fighting stigma and discrimination and empowering young people to protect themselves against the disease. For more information log onto www.staying-alive.org/foundation.
ABOUT MTV NETWORKS INTERNATIONAL
MTV Networks International includes the premier multimedia entertainment brands MTV: Music Television, VH1, Nickelodeon, TMF (The Music Factory), VIVA, Flux, Paramount Comedy, Comedy Central, Game One, Neopets, GameTrailers, Shockwave, Addicting Games, Atom Films and Xfire. MTV Networks' brands are seen globally in 560 million households in 162 countries and 33 languages via more than 150 locally programmed and operated TV channels and more than 350 digital media properties. The company's diverse holdings also include interests in television syndication, digital media, publishing, home video, radio, recorded music, licensing & merchandising and two feature film divisions, MTV Films and Nickelodeon Movies. MTV Networks is a unit of Viacom Inc. (NYSE: VIA, VIA.B).
For further information, images or interview requests please contact:
Christine Mosha
MTV Networks Africa
Email: mosha.christine@mtvne.com
Cell: 0754 000907
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