Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation's SECURE THE FUTURE® Programme Announces New Findings Confirming Grandmothers Against Poverty and AIDS (GAPA) Has Positive Impact on Mitigating HIV/AIDS Impact in the Community

Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation's SECURE THE FUTURE® Programme Announces New Findings Confirming Grandmothers Against Poverty and AIDS (GAPA) Has Positive Impact on Mitigating HIV/AIDS Impact in the Community PR Newswire CAPE TOWN, South Africa, October 18, 2012 CAPE TOWN, South Africa, October 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Survey finds empowerment programme helps 57 percent of respondents reduce socioeconomic impact of HIV/AIDS by providing tools to reduce poverty and emotional burden of disease New research presented today at the first Africa Regional Conference on Gerontology and Geriatrics concluded that Grandmothers Against Poverty & AIDS (GAPA), a nonprofit grantee of the Bristol-Myers Squibb Foundation's ®SECURE THE FUTURE programme, has been a driving force in empowering grandmothers whose families have been affected by HIV/AIDS to cope with the emotional and economic demands of caring for their families. For most of Africa, poverty is prevalent and increasing, especially in rural areas. Several studies have explored the link between poverty and vulnerability to HIV/AIDS and suggest that, especially in sub-Saharan Africa, there is a strong association between socio-economic disadvantage and increased susceptibility to HIV/AIDS amongst this [1]population. While multigenerational households are the norm in rural Tanzania, the burden of caring for children is usually shared by all members of the family.