Youth Challenge International (YCI) is a non-profit, charitable organization that combines community development, health promotion and conservation in projects conducted by teams of local youth and international volunteers in Africa, Asia and Latin America. By involving local youth directly in programs, YCI is able to effectively create awareness around issues such as HIV/AIDS, gender equality, youth employability, life skills and environmental protection.

According to YCI, HIV/AIDS is deeply impacting youth in developing countries. More than half of the 14,000 people newly infected each day are under 25 and the impact of HIV/AIDS will result in as many as 25 million orphans by 2010. With these statistics in mind, each donation made through Planeterra supports the work of YCI’s HIV/AIDS education programs in Tanzania.

Planeterra Donation
2007: Our donation of $3,000 supported YCI’s World Aids Day activities in Zanzibar, consisting of 12 workshops engaging over 2,500 young people in discussions on sexual health and reproduction, music and art workshops and sports activities along with a widely attended World Aids Day public event.

One of the primary aims of organizing such activities is to reduce the stigma associated with HIV/AIDS. YCI organized their most intensive initiative to date, which included young people living with HIV/AIDS facilitating the music workshop and performing an antistigma play in front of an audience of 400. As well, prior to the sports tournament, there was a public anti-stigma debate which provided youth with the opportunity to openly discuss discrimination that exists in the community.

2006: $2,725 was donated to support the development of a new YCI pilot program in Kenya and Ghana. This program will enable YCI to continue to develop their valuable programs within Africa.

2005: $2,040 was donated in support of YCI's HIV/AIDS Education Program in Tanzania.

2004: $500 was donated in support of YCI's HIV/AIDS Education Program in Tanzania.

Our 2004 and 2005 donations supported YCI's work in improving young men and women's lives in Tanzania. The ravages of HIV/AIDS combined with poor employment skills training for youth have lead to a loss of hope and reduced opportunities for young people. YCI is addressing these problems by implementing three-day employment skills training seminars and HIV/AIDS education workshops for young men and women across Tanzania. These seminars and workshops reach over 1,000 rural Tanzanian youth who typically receive little in the way of HIV/AIDS education or employment skills training.

To learn more about Youth Challenge International, visit their website here

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