According to the Star, a 12-member delegation of Canadian grandmothers recently traveled across sub-Saharan Africa to record the stories of African grandmothers and AIDS orphans to relay back to Canada (Black, Toronto Star, 5/26).
The campaign, which was launched in March 2006, aims to encourage grandmothers in Canada to raise money for their counterparts in Africa who are raising their grandchildren. The funds are funneled directly to grassroots organizations operating in Africa, where the grandmothers can define their needs -- which often include food, school tuition, counseling services or coffins (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 8/14/06).
There are about 130,000 AIDS orphans in Swaziland -- a number that is expected to increase to about 200,000 by 2010 -- the Star reports. To promote women's rights and gender equality for rural grandmothers in Swaziland, the Canadian delegation recently participated in a two-day event organized by Swaziland for Positive Living, which operates with the help of a $100,000 grant from the Lewis foundation.