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Ivorian midfielder TOURE Yaya Gnegnery, one of the brightest stars of his generation, will lead the PEPFAR-funded Sports for Life campaign against HIV/AIDS in Cote d’Ivoire.

Ivorian Soccer Star Joins PEPFAR Team Against HIV/AIDS

Ivorian soccer superstar TOURE Yaya Gnegnery has joined the PEPFAR team in the fight against HIV/AIDS as Ambassador-at-Large for Sports for Life, a campaign that equips thousands of young soccer-playing boys and girls with the knowledge and skills to protect themselves against the disease.

The 24-year-old Toure, one of the hottest young prospects in international soccer, has just signed on to play for the world-class FC Barcelona club – and to lead JHU/CCP’s PEPFAR-funded Sports for Life program in Côte d’Ivoire.

“AIDS is a disease we need to banish,” Toure said. “With the help of football and Sports for Life, we’re going to kick AIDS out of Africa.”

Appearances and publicity by the young midfielder, whose meteoric rise has taken him from Côte d’Ivoire’s Académie Mimosifcom to a professional contract at age 18 and his most recent stint with the French team AS Monaco, will add to the buzz generated by the growing Sports for Life program. Since its launch in Côte d’Ivoire in December 2006, Sports for Life has reached more than 12,000 youngsters with HIV prevention messages through activities built around soccer. Begun in Abidjan, the program will expand to Abengourou, Bouaké, San Pedro, and Yamoussoukro in 2008.

Sports for Life is one of dozens of HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and treatment projects supported by PEPFAR, whose 2007 budget in Côte d’Ivoire totals $84 million USD. PEPFAR (the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief) is a five-year, $15 billion initiative to help countries around the world turn back the tide of the HIV/AIDS pandemic. In Cote d’Ivoire, one of 15 priority countries selected for intensive U.S. support, PEPFAR is by far the largest funder of HIV/AIDS programs.

PEPFAR’s financial and technical support to more than 100 partners and subpartners – from government ministries to local community- and faith-based organizations – has produced significant results in the fight against HIV/AIDS in Côte d’Ivoire, including providing antiretroviral treatment for more than 25,700 people, palliative-care services to more than 44,000 people, and care and support for more than 24,000 orphans and other vulnerable children.