ANNUAL CALENDAR

Click here to download the current SABCOHA calendar:  2010 Events Calendar 174.50 Kb

 SABCOHA Breakfast Briefing: 2010 Special Projects

The South African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (SABCOHA) has great pleasure inviting you to a breakfast briefing that will provide feedback from the 2010 Special Projects’ School Holiday Programme and Condom Distribution Initiative.

Join Kai Crooks-Chissano, SABCOHA 2010 Special Projects Manager, David Matamela, Dance24, and Kimmy Msibi, dance4Life for first-hand insight.

The morning’s events will include a film of the SABCOHA 2010 School Holiday Programme.

Date:    17th September 2010
Time:    07:30 for 08:15 – 10:30
Venue: GIBS, 26 Mellville Road, Illovo
RSVP:    This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
By: 10th September 2010
Note: Space is limited and reservations will be on a first come first serve basis.

 Download invitation. 474.50 Kb
 Download event program. 469.50 Kb
 Download directions to the venue. 203.00 Kb

Kwazulu-Natal Peer Educators Forum

The South African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (SABCOHA) is pleased to invite you to participate in a one-day forum which will not only offer the opportunity to network with fellow peer educators but will also include skills development and will allow peer educators to contribute to the establishment of the provincial structures that will be the foundation of SABCOHA's Peer Educators Support Programme.

Peer education is considered a vital prevention component of any workplace programme and the key to unlocking behaviour change. However, there is often a lack of support, debriefing and mentorship for peer educators. SABCOHA has established a national programme which aims to mobilise and empower peer educators within a network that will facilitate information sharing and broad engagement.

When: Thursday, 27 August 2010
Time: 09:00 - 15:00 (included lunch)
Where: Saints Hospitality Centre, St. Philomensa Children's Home, 92 Rippon Road, Sydenham
RSVP: By Thursday 20 August 2010 to Harold at SABCOHA This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or (011) 880 4821
Cost: There is no fee for participating in the Forum, however any travel arrangements to attend the Forum are for your own costs.

 Download the invitation 427.23 Kb

SABCOHA Breakfast – feedback from Vienna AIDS Conference

The South African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (SABCOHA) has pleasure inviting you to a breakfast where feedback will provided from the 18th International AIDS Conference, that took place in Vienna, Austria during July 2010.

The theme was ‘Rights Here, Right Now’ and by presenting the outcomes SABCOHA hopes to leverage how we as a country and the South African business community specifically can realize that goal.
Date:    31st August 2010
Time:    07:30 for 08:15 – 10:30
Venue: GIBS, 26 Mellville Road, Illovo
Cost: R200 for non-SABCOHA members
RSVP:     This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it  
By: 23rd August 2010

Note: Space is limited and reservations will be on a first come first serve basis.

 Gauteng Peer Educators Forum

The South African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (SABCOHA) is pleased to invite you to participate in a one-day forum which will not only offer the opportunity to network with fellow peer educators but will also include skills development and will allow peer educators to contribute to the establishment of the provincial structures that will be the foundation of SABCOHA's Peer Educators Support Programme.

Peer education is considered a vital prevention component of any workplace programme and the key to unlocking behaviour change. However, there is often a lack of support, debriefing and mentorship for peer educators. SABCOHA has established a national programme which aims to mobilise and empower peer educators within a network that will facilitate information sharing and broad engagement.

When: Thursday, 23 September 2010
Time: 09:00 - 15:00 (included lunch)
Where: Pick and Pay Office Park, 2 Allum Road, Kensington
RSPV: By Thursday 15 September 2010 to Harold at SABCOHA This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or (011) 880 4821
Cost: There is no fee for participating in the Forum, however any travel arrangements to attend the Forum are for your own costs.

 Download the invitation 422.95 Kb. 

SABCOHA Breakfast: Hyatt Regency

Trucking Wellness: A story of successful partnerships

Satellite Session: 12 August 2010

The South African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (SABCOHA) n conjunction with Mercedes-Benz South Africa ave pleasure inviting you to a breakfast where we would like to discuss

Trucking Wellness

A story of successful partnerships.

The Trucking Wellness Programme’s success is hinged on its complete buy in and integration from industry stakeholders. It is this collaboration of private and public partnerships that solidifies its success, making it sustainable in the long term. The mere fact that the Board is made up of both unions and employers makes it remarkable.

During the breakfast all the stakeholders will discuss and share the aspects required for a successful Public Private Partnership (PPP) in collaboration with national and international funders and the benefits such partnerships hold for all the various stakeholders.
Date: 12th August 2010
Time: 08:30 for 09:00 – 10:30
Venue: Hyatt Regency, Nina Room, Conference Level, 191 Oxford Road, Rosebank, Johannesburg
RSVP: This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
By: 5th August 2010

 Programme 1.29 Mb

Forthcoming SABCOHA events

3rd Wits/SABCOHA/HEARD ‘HIV/AIDS in the Workplace & Beyond' Research in Action Symposium

Prevention and Possibility:  An Expanded Response to the HIV Epidemic

9-11 November 2010

A new momentum and evidence base has grown around prevention. But HIV prevention is neither simple nor easy. This 3rd HIV/AIDS in the Workplace Research Symposium, hosted by Wits, SABCOHA and HEARD, will prioritise the dissemination of the growing body of innovation and experience in HIV prevention in South Africa. 

The aims of the three-day symposium are:

• to discuss high quality applied research on HIV/AIDS in the workplace, in ways that are useful to academics, business people and other interested stakeholders, and with a view to informing and improving workplace practices; and
• to strengthen the existing network of researchers in this field (both junior and established).

Click here for more information:

Past Events

SABCOHA Western Cape Conference

4 & 5 May 2010

The SABCOHA Western Cape business sector conference on HIV and AIDS took place at Spier in Stellenbosch. Whilst there are no conference fees, delegates will be required to fund their own travel and accommodation. Most of the seats are reserved for business sector representatives as we are aiming to attract some 250 delegates from more than 200 companies. Senior government and civil society leaders will also be invited to participate through the provincial AIDS council.

The primary purpose of the conference is to consider and agree on ways to strengthen the business sector’s response and contribution to the goals and priorities contained in the HIV and AIDS and STI National Strategic Plan 2007-2011 (NSP). The conference will inform the development of a Western Cape business sector strategy on HIV and AIDS and provides the ideal opportunity for the election of a representative provincial business coalition on HIV and AIDS.

Click here for more information on the conference:

Meeting to agree Business Plan to support the HCT Campaign

29 March 2010

The objective of the meeting was to develop a comprehensive strategy for the business sector to align with and support the national HCT Campaign being coordinated by SANAC. On World AIDS Day President Jacob Zuma made a call to the nation - from individuals and communities to businesses and Government - to take personal and collective responsibility to stop new HIV infections, provide care and support to those living with HIV and to ensure access to treatment for all people in need.

A significant milestone for Government in its response to the epidemic is the launch of a national HCT campaign in April and we - as the business sector - want to be ready to demonstrate our commitment to this initiative by presenting a concrete plan of action.

Click here to view the invitation:  HCT Meeting 422.52 Kb

Click here to view the agenda:  HCT Meeting Agenda 63.00 Kb

Click here to view the questionaire:  HCT Meeting Questionaire 27.00 Kb

Click here to view the HCT Strategy Document:  National Hiv Counselling & Testing Campaig Strategy 295.50 Kb

Presentations and Minutes:

 MoH HCT Campaign Presentation (22 March 2010) 315.82 Kb

 MOH Campaign Meeting Minute (16 March 2010) 101.00 Kb

 Dr Rajesh Patel 335.50 Kb

 Dr Thobile Mbengashe 423.50 Kb

 Liesel Heynike 1.11 Mb

For more information:

Private Sector meeting discusses business support for the national HCT campaign

Business engages with government in support of national HIV testing campaign

SABCOHA Breakfast: Faith-based Organisations

25th March 2010

In light of Governments’ renewed commitment to combating the spread of HIV and treating those already infected, Business and Faith-based Organizations both have a role to play in extending and complementing the services offered by Government.  How do Business and Faith-based Organizations ensure collaboration in order to capitalize on each others strength’s and areas of specialization to strengthen Government’s HIV programs? How can Business and Faith-based Organizations raise the response to another level in order to prevent further infections, improve access to treatment and help meet the targets of the National Strategic Plan?

Private sector and faith-based organisations (FBOs) discuss HIV and AIDS

Breakfast: Exploring ways in which business can engage with Labour federations COSATU, NACTU and FEDUSA in relation to HIV, AIDS & TB

16th February 2010

SABCOHA), in conjunction with the Colloquium for Social Entrepreneurs, hosted a breakfast to explore ways in which business can engage with Labour federations COSATU, NACTU and FEDUSA in relation to HIV, AIDS & TB.

In light of Governments’ renewed commitment to combating the spread of HIV and treating those already infected, Business and Labour are presented with a unique challenge in finding ways to collaborate. How does Business and Labour ensure cordiality in the way that they manage relationships, to ensure that HIV programs are extended and strengthened? How can Business and Labour effectively collaborate outside the cut and thrust of collective bargaining, to prevent further infections and improve access to treatment?

For more information:

SABCOHA and unions chart the way forward in 2010

Annual General Meeting

29th October 2009

SABCOHA's annual general meeting was held on Thursday, 29 October and new members were appointed to the board.

Click here for more information:

PERCCI/Sabcoha Health & Wellness Awards in the Nelson Mandela Business Metro

30 October 2009

Click here for more information:  Awards Poster 1.69 Mb

Click here to read about the winners:

Collaboration Meeting between SABCOHA, the Gauteng Provincial Government (GPG) and AIDS Programme Partners

20 October 2009

A meeting was held between SABCOHA and the GPG to discusss closer collaboration.

Click here to view the agenda:  MSAU Agenda 68.00 Kb 

Click here to view GPG's presentation:  Gauteng Strategic Plan (2009-2011-2014) 1.54 Mb

Increasing corporate engagement on TB: SME focus

15 October 2009

The Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GBC), in conjunction with Lilly MDR-TB Partnership, convened a series of workshops to increase the private sector response to TB.

This was the third and last workshop in 2009, following previous gatherings in Johannesburg and Nairobi. The objective was to encourage organisations to engage with TB programmes at different levels, including supporting SMEs and the supply chain with their workshop programmes.

Discussion focused on the national Department of Health's TB programme, working with SMEs and registering as a treatment centre. Tools and resources were handed out and participants broke into small groups for discussion.

For an overview of previous workshops, click here.

Other presentations: Integrating TB in the workplace

Benefits of engaging supply chain company case studies

For more information on TB and managing the disease in the workplace, click here.

SABCOHA - 2010 FIFA World Cup Meeting

9th September 2009

SABCOHA held a meeting with interested parties to consider the implications of the Fifa World Cup event in South Africa.

Click here to view the presentation given by Brad Mears:  SABCOHA Fifa World Bup 2010 169.50 Kb

HSRC's Third South African National HIV Prevalence, Incidence, Behaviour and Communication Survey, 2008

11 August 2009

SABCOHA held a breakfast seminar with Dr Olive Shisana, the president and chief executive of the  Human Sciences Research Council, who presented the findings of the HSRC's 2008 survey.

It found that there was some cause for optimism, with  a decline in HIV prevalence in the teenage population, among other successes recorded in the years 2005 to 2008.

For more information:

HSRC 2008 survey shows cause for optimism 

Role of Traditional Leadership in Fighting HIV/AIDS Responses in South Africa

8 July 2009

SABCOHA, together with the Ubuntu Institute, held a breakfast seminar on the Role of Traditional Leadership in Fighting HIV/AIDS Responses in South Africa.

The keynote speaker was Minister of Provincial and Local Government Sicelo Shiceka. Research presentations were delivered by Prince Cedza Dlamini from the Ubuntu Institute and Professor Michelo Hansungule from the University of Pretoria.

For more information:

Traditional leaders key partners in the fight against HIV and AIDS

28 May 2009

SABCOHA and the Colloquium for Social Entrepreneurs hosted a breakfast on Sex Workers and the World of Work in Johannesburg.

Sex workers play a key part in understanding sexual behaviour and improving prevention and should be fully integrated in a private sector response to HIV.

Speakers included Lauren Jankelowitz, the programme manager: special services and community engagement in the Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit at the University of the Witwatersrand; Lara Magu, a sex worker and co-ordinator of the sex worker's movement Sisonke, Johannesburg branch; and Tertius Wessels, from Trucking Wellness, who gave an example of workplace programmes that had been implemented in the trucking industry.

For Lauren Jankelowitz's presentation, click here.  

Increasing Corporate Engagement on Tuberculosis

14 May 2009

The Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GBC), in conjunction with Lilly MDR-TB Partnership, held a technical roundtable in Johannesburg to discuss the development and implementation of workplace TB and integrated HIV/TB programmes in South Africa.

Discussion focused on the sharing of best practice and concrete steps for action. Insight was given into the state of the TB and HIV/TB epidemics in South Africa and their impact on companies; participants heard about the TB National Strategic Plan; and were introduced to state-of-the-art tools and resources to aid in programme implementation.

For more information, click here.

SA AIDS Conference - SABCOHA Satellite Sessions

31 March and 2 April 2009

In parallel to this year's SA AIDS Conference in Durban SABCOHA with welcome sponsorship from Randwater held two-days of Private Sector Capacity Building Sessions. The first session was targeted at Peer Educators and was conducted by Dr David Dickinson, Wits Business School, empowering Peer Educators and Workplace Program Coordinators to address the reality of Multiple Sexual Networks. The second session offered two workshops: 1) the Recession-proof your HIV/AIDS Workplace Program through effective Monitoring & Evaluation and 2) Strengthening the Relationship between Traditional Health Practitioners and the World of Work.

Presentations:

 The importance of Impact Evaluation of HIV/TB workplace programmes 1.04 Mb

 Biomedical and Traditional Healing Collaboration on HIV/AIDS 443.00 Kb

26 March 2009

The SABCOHA Northern Cape Inaugural Breakfast was held at the Kimberley Club on 26 March. Following an extensive process of consultation, SABCOHA established its first provincial branch in the Northern Cape.

Click here to read more:

Inaugural Private Sector HIV and AIDS Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) Seminar

12 March 2009

The 2009 Inaugural South African Private Sector HIV and AIDS M&E Seminar was aimed at supporting pillar three of the National Strategic Plan (NSP), in particular the implementation of the NSP-M&E framework in the non-state sector of South Africa, with an initial focus on access to and effectiveness of HIV and AIDS treatment and care provided by the non-state sector of South Africa.

A notable shortcoming of the previous NSP - 2000-2005 - was the lack of a proper M&E framework. This shortcoming was addressed in the current NSP - 2007-2011 - which contains an M&E framework.

With the 2009 mid-term review of the NSP approaching and regular United Nations General Assembly Special Session (UNGASS) HIV and AIDS reporting taking place, it is vital that indicators of progress towards meeting targets of HIV and AIDS commitments can be measured.

The non-state sector, particularly the private sector in South Africa, has yet to implement the NSP-M&E framework on a sector scale as required by the NSP. In particular, much room exists for improved measurement and reporting of the extent of access to ART by those who require it. The measurement of such access and the effectiveness of treatment are key indicators contained in the NSP M&E framework and the UNGASS indicators.

Presentations:

 The NSP and other HIV/AIDS Commitments – the Context for M&E (Mark Heywood) 691.50 Kb

 Preliminary Private Sector M&E experience in the Northern Cape (L Kotlich) 134.50 Kb

Related articles:

Minister of Health welcomes closer collaboration between government and business on HIV and AIDS

Breakfast: Economic crisis and wellness programmes

10 March 2009

The Colloquium for Social Entrepreneurs, in conjunction with the South African Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS (SABCOHA), hosted a breakfast on Economic crisis and wellness programmes at GIBS in Johannesburg. 

In the midst of a worldwide economic meltdown, organisations in South Africa are directly affected. How is this affecting our HIV and wellness programmes in the workplace? What are companies doing to mitigate the effects of the crisis and how do we ensure the gains achieved in improving workplace health are not lost?

Read more:

Economic breakfast raises concerns about the future

KAEFER Thermal Contracting Services roundtable (19 February 2009)

KAEFER Thermal Contracting Services, in conjunction with SABCOHA and the GTZ, presented a case study on how the company has developed and implemented a sustainable, comprehensive HIV and AIDS Management Programme, including the provision of antiretroviral therapy to employees, their spouses and immediate family members. KAEFER managing director, George Wardrope, and HR manager, Wendall Naidoo, shared the lessons learned, challenges experienced and what they thought had contributed to the success of their programme. Key partners demonstrated how appropriate partnerships were a key contributing factor to the success of workplace programmes.

KAEFER Thermal Contracting Services shares lessons learnt

Traditional healers and South African business: Opportunities and challenges of working together in response to HIV/AIDS (12 February 2009)

The Colloquium for Social Entrepreneurs, in conjunction with SABCOHA, hosted a breakfast on Traditional healers and South African business: Opportunities and challenges of working together in response to HIV/AIDS. The key note speaker was Dr David Dickinson, associate professor: industrial relations and HIV/AIDS in the workplace, assisted by John Standish-White (Anglo Coal), Sheila Mbele-Khama (chair: Ekurhuleni Traditional Health Practitioners Forum) and an Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality family health official.

Click here to read more.

For the presentation on traditional healing by Sheila Mbele-Khama, click here.

For the presentation on the Ekurhuleni Traditional Health Practitioners' Programme, click here.

Northern Cape Private Sector Conference (25 and 26 November 2008)

SABCOHA hosted a Northern Cape private sector conference on 25 and 26 November 2008 in Upington. About 30 chief executives and operations managers of independently managed business operations and employer organisations participated.

Click here to read more.

How can business support the HIV and AIDS STI National Strategic Plan 2007 - 2011? Find out by joining leaders, key stakeholders and decision-makers for a collaboration in the private sector strategy on HIV and AIDS.

Metropolitan, SABCOHA and BUSA invite you to participate in shaping the future response to HIV and AIDS in South Africa. Prominent guest speakers will inspire you with Metropolitan Live the Future scenarios. During an interactive session, SABCOHA will share progress on the development of a private sector strategy on HIV and AIDS in line with the NSP.

The events took place in Cape Town, East London, Durban, Nelspruit and Johannesburg.

2nd SABCOHA Private Sector Conference (5 and 6 November 2008) 

The conference was held at Emperors Palace in Gauteng. The conference was highly stimulating and very well attended.

Related articles

State calls on business to help tackle HIV

Call for greater private sector response to HIV and AIDS

SABCOHA Conference kicks off 

Call made for greater unity in fighting HIV

Presentations

Jay Naidoo keynote address

Conference programme

Actuarial Society of South Africa: Monitoring and evaluating access to and effectiveness of HIV and AIDS treatment in the private sector

Overview: private sector conference

GIBBS: Leadership of organisational change in successful HIV/AIDS workplace interventions

Education, Training and Counselling: Findings following the first SANS 16001:2007 audits

AIDS Accountability International presentation

Herd: Impediments to the uptake of VCT and treatment

AIDS Accountability International: Proposed model for ranking business response to HIV/AIDS

Wits Business School: Traditional healers, HIV/AIDS and company programmes

TB-HIV integration in the workplace

Centre for the Study of AIDS: Beyond ribbons and rhetoric – HIV prevention in the workplace

Medworx: Private-public partnership in healthcare

BizAIDS: Taking up the informal sector challenge  

Wits Business School: Working with peer educators to identify and respond to risky sexual networks

Women’s health, HIV and work in South Africa: Making the connections

Work the Future presentation

Tomorrow Trust: Exit strategy for sustainability and self empowerment of OVCs

For Metropolitan's Live the Future website, on HIV and AIDS scenarios for South Africa 2005 to 2025, click here.

SABCOHA Annual General Meeting (30 October 2008)

The SABCOHA annual general meeting was held on Thursday, 30 October 2008 and three new governors were appointed.

Click here to view the new board.

Breakfast: AIDS 2008 feedback (17 September 2008)

Jenni Gillies, the group HIV consultant at SABMiller, and Joy Beckett, the HIV/ Aids manager: operations at De Beers Consolidated Mines, gave feedback on the 17th International AIDS Conference, AIDS 2008, that took place in Mexico City from 3 to 8 August; the conference is an annual event, organised by the International AIDS Society. The theme was Universal Action Now and by presenting the outcomes SABCOHA hoped to leverage how we as a business community and country can realise that goal.

Denise Hunt from the AIDS Consortium spoke about the needs of the community and how business could support it more actively within the government's policy framework. Dr Tracey Peterson from De Beers and Jenni Gillies from SAB Ltd presented case studies.

Breakfast: Children are Everyone’s Business (July 2008)

We are often encouraged to leave work at the workplace and home outside of the workplace, however, HIV/AIDS forces us all to act across such lines. Children constitute 40% of all people in South Africa, representing the largest single grouping in the country. As employers and employees, our children’s lives affect why we work, how we perform in the workplace, what we do with our income and benefits, and what support is required for us to function effectively.  Business influences societal aspirations through advertising and marketing.  Children’s lives and possibilities are shaped by parents and caregivers, schools and communities, by what business does or does not do and how it operates.

Challenge to business to get involved in fight for children's rights

In response to the HIV/AIDS and STI National Strategic Plan 2007 - 2011 (NSP) and the restructuring of the South African National Aids Council (SANAC), a Situational Report of the private sector's response to HIV and AIDS in South Africa was commissioned. The report explores the contribution of the private sector and sectoral level responses to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa.

In preparation for the next SANAC Plenary Session, scheduled for 27 May 2008, governors and members of SABCOHA assisted with the evaluation of the Situational Analysis that was conducted and to review critically the document before it is published. The report is the first step in the development of a private sector response to the HIV/AIDS epidemic in South Africa and considers a broad range of factors, including:

• The broader context within which a private sector response to HIV/AIDS is taking place;
• An assessment of what contributions the private sector is making in the response to HIV/AIDS;
• It links the private sector responses to the four main pillars of the National Strategic Plan; and
• It provides an assessment of the impediments preventing the private sector from responding more comprehensively to HIV/AIDS.JBIC/SABCOHA Breakfast: HIV/Aids Capacity Building Programmme
  

Risk Management Workshop for Small Businesses (22-23 May 2008)

BizAIDS in partnership with Women for Housing held a workshop on Risk Management for Small Businesses. The workship focussed on basic business skills and the risks associated with the continuity of the business.

SABCOHA held a breakfast on Community Outreach and how it can be implemented as part of a Corporate Strategy.

Click here to read the article about the presentation:

HIV: Crisis, What Crisis?” (26 March 2008)

The UCT Graduate School of Business together with the South African Business Coalition on HIV & AIDS (SABCOHA) held a seminar by Dr Francois Venter MD, Clinical Director, HIV Management Cluster, Esselen Street Clinic and Reproductive Health and HIV Research Unit and lecturer in the Dept of Medicine, University of the Witwatersrand.

Click here to read an interview with Dr Venter on the talk:

SABCOHA Breakfast: 'What difference can nutrition really make?' (20 February 2008 )

Nutrition is a controversial but often neglected part of HIV treatment strategies. André Croucamp, author of Taste for Life, claims that the role that nutrition can play in managing HIV infection is a significant and not a marginal one.  

Click here to read an article on the presentation:

LAST YEAR'S EVENTS (2007)

SABCOHA Annual General Meeting (October 2007)

A new board was elected at the AGM. SABCOHA Prevention Round Table. Click here to view the minutes of the AGM: agm_mom_-_2007_

SABCOHA Prevention Round Table (October 2007)

In realising that prevention strategies in the workplace and in broader society have failed, there is a need to fundamentally change what we are doing, and in some cases reinvent strategies. In moving from simplistic understandings of human behavior, psychology and sexuality, towards an intimate and integrated insight on how these phenomena combine, prevention programs can be strengthened to achieve lasting healthy behavior. 

Click here to view the article on the round table:

Tackling sexuality in the workplace

Click here to view a presentation given at the follow-up Think Tank:

hiv_prevention_version_08071

Tackling sexuality in the workplace (October 2007)

Given that HIV prevention strategies in the workplace and broader society have largely failed, new insights into human behaviour, psychology and sexuality are called for. With this in mind, SABCOHA hosted a fascinating workshop at the Inanda Club in Johannesburg on 4 October where three experts gave input in these areas and pointed the way forward for the development of new approaches.

Pierre Brouard from the Centre for the Study of AIDS, based at the University of Pretoria, gave an insightful presentation on the sociological aspects of HIV.

Brouard, a psychologist by training said, "AIDS has taught me to be more a sociologist than a psychologist" - referring to the importance of the social and political milieu in understanding trends in HIV/AIDS.

"Prevention is about changing behaviour but the social and political world we live in has a powerful impact on behaviour," he said.

The economics of prevention  (August 2007)

Debbie Muirhead from Aurum Institute for Health Research presented The economics of prevention at the SABCOHA breakfast. 

Click here to view the presentation made at the breakfast:

SA AIDS 2007: SABCOHA Satellite Session Programme (June 2007)

SABCOHA held a Private Sector parallel session at the SA AIDS 2007 Conference in Durban.

Click here to view the presentations:

Peer educators meeting in Cape Town (May 2007)

Informer Newspaper and SABCOHA hosted the workplace Peer Educators Forum in Cape Town, which was sponsored by Shell SA.

Click here to read more about the event:

Launch of SABCOHA's internet portal (May 2007)

SABCOHA unveiled its new website, which it hopes will assist businesses in dealing with HIV/Aids-related issues. The website is "interactive, informative, up-to-date," and offers information which will aid national HIV/Aids measures, he said. These included latest news and information on upcoming conferences, policy developments and research, and HIV/Aids service providers’ details.

Click here to view an article on the launch:

Peer Educators Forum meeting in East London (March 2007)

SABCOHA and Informer newspaper held a meeting with workplace Peer Educators in East London. It follows from the hugely successful launches of the Peer Educators Forums in Johannesburg, Rustenburg, Durban and Port Elizabeth. The Forum aims to recognise Peer Educators for their dedication and commitment to colleagues, allow them to share and learn from one another, and through presentations by experienced peer education trainers, also to provide useful information on the research and HIV/AIDS strategies.

Markinor/Bureau of Market Research (January 2007)

The first SABCOHA breakfast of the year kicked off with a presentation of the Markinor Survey: "Fusing HIV/AIDS risk segmentation and demographic modeling: a novel way of looking at the business impact of HIV/AIDS in South Africa." The research, conducted jointly by Markinor and the BMR (Bureau for Market Research), integrates insight and empirical evidence for the first time in the country in a study of this nature. Key findings include that: high-risk sexual behaviour is on the rise; the number of HIV-positive people is still increasing; and that HIV is encroaching on the highly skilled and more affluent among us.

For details on the event click here

Fusing HIV/AIDS risk segmentation and demographic modeling.

2006

A number of major events were held in 2006, including the launch of the Peer Educator's Forum and feedback from the International AIDS Conference in Toronto. The country’s first-ever private sector conference hosted by SABCOHA and Business Unity South Africa brought together a wide range of experts and participants in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention from the private sector, research agencies, government, NGO world and beyond.