UBUNTU CENTRE

摘要

Almost forty percent of the population of the windswept former black township of Zwide, a poverty-stricken suburb of Port Elizabeth, South Africa, is infected with HIV. Over the past two decades, HIV and AIDS have convulsed the community, decimating families and derailing children's lives, including their schooling. In 1998, a young American tourist and a local teacher teamed up to form the Ubuntu Education Fund, a nonprofit focusing on getting children access to higher education and employment. The fund provides prenatal and child healthcare, HIV testing, counseling, and treatment for mothers, along with initiatives such as after-school programs, exam study sessions, university scholarships, and an array of counseling services. The foundation's original offices were housed in an old shipping container, the building of choice for those who are starting a business in the townships-because they are cheap, portable, and secure.