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Small businesses can help fight HIV/AIDS
17 August 2005. The Star. Republished courtesy of Independent Newspapers (Pty) Ltd.
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The issue of HIV/AIDS no longer surprises us. We've grown too accustomed to reading, talking and hearing about HIV/AIDS. But we are still unsure on how to deal with the epidemic as it reaches into all aspects of our work life - the failing health of colleagues and their families; increasing absenteeism; and the impact on the organisation's performance and bottom line.
Newspaper articles often suggest that little has been achieved by business in dealing with the pandemic, especially among small, micro and medium-sized enterprises (SMMEs).
If one judges the response against the size of the epidemic, these reports may indeed have a point. However, pioneering work is being done, both among large corporates and SMMEs.
Is it possible to mount a meaningful effort against HIV/AIDS if you are a small or medium-sized company? Yes, says Brad Mears, chief executive of the South African Coalition on HIV/AIDS (SABCOHA).
Mears concedes that SMMEs face different challenges to corporates with bigger workforces, management structures and budgets. Yet this doesn't mean that a valid response to the problem cannot be achieved.
"Our work with SMMEs has shown three effective ways through which they can be engaged," explains Mears.
The first method is through bargaining council structures, he says. With high-level representation from employers and labour on these councils, commitment is obtained from all stakeholders when launching a sector-wide HIV/AIDS programme. Hundreds, if not thousands of SMMEs can be reached through the bargaining council structures.
A pilot project with the Metal and Engineering Industry Bargaining Council, for example, established that over 8 000 SMMEs could be positively affected, while Sabcoha's work with the Contract Cleaning Industry Bargaining Council in KwaZulu Natal has resulted in some innovative achievements.
"This includes the simultaneous conducting of an HIV prevalence survey; provision of voluntary counselling and testing services (VCT); and a Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices (KAP) survey," says Mears.
The project has trained industry champions and master trainers, and provides access for employees to an Employee Assistance Centre. Remarkable uptake of voluntary testing and counselling was achieved, despite the wide geographic spread of employees.
SABCOHA and the Contract Cleaning Bargaining Council are also commencing an economic impact analysis to study the medium to long term impact of HIV/AIDS on the industry.
The second method of assisting the SMMEs has been through the BizAIDS Programme. The programme is funded by USAID and runs in partnership with the International Executive Services Corps. It has trained 230 delegates and has 22 trainers ready to assist other companies. Sabcoha is currently planning a national scale-up of the project.
The third prong of the strategy is a comprehensive "Toolkit" guiding small and medium size employers on how to implement an HIV/AIDS programme within their organisations. The Toolkit was developed with funding from the British Department for International Development and in partnership with Standard Bank and Unilever. It is endorsed by the Global Business Coalition on HIV/AIDS.
SABCOHA has received positive testimonials on its implementation so far and is working to increase its availability and impact through supply chains of large companies, including Eskom and Volkswagen South Africa.
"While it's true that SMMEs may not be able to achieve as much as corporates or government because of the challenges they face, their willingness to combine resources will produce significant results," Mears believes.
"Whether you opt for SABCOHA and bargaining councils, or for chambers of commerce, it is only through partnerships with bodies such as these that these initiatives are possible," Mears says.
For more information on SABCOHA, contact Anita Volker on 011-880-4821 or [email protected] or visit www.sabcoha.co.za |
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