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The availability of" /> <meta name="generator" content="Drupal 7 (https://www.drupal.org)" /> <link rel="canonical" href="https://www.sil.org/about/why-languages-matter/language-and-millennium-development-goals/goal-6" /> <link rel="shortlink" href="https://www.sil.org/node/829" /> <meta property="og:site_name" content="SIL Global" /> <meta property="og:type" content="article" /> <meta property="og:url" content="https://www.sil.org/about/why-languages-matter/language-and-millennium-development-goals/goal-6" /> <meta property="og:title" content="Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases" /> <meta property="og:description" content="People in ethnolinguistic communities are vulnerable to HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases due in part to the lack of essential information in the mother tongue. Reading materials in local languages that discuss hygiene, nutrition,and the prevention and treatment of diseases have proven to be effective in improving general health and life expectancy. The availability of culturally-relevant information dispels misconceptions surrounding HIV/AIDS. "This is one of the best stories in Bafut!" One day Becky Mfonyam started reading Kande's Story to her hairdresser." /> <meta property="og:updated_time" content="2016-09-26T14:43:32-05:00" /> <meta name="twitter:card" content="summary" /> <meta name="twitter:url" content="https://www.sil.org/about/why-languages-matter/language-and-millennium-development-goals/goal-6" /> <meta name="twitter:title" content="Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases" /> <meta name="twitter:description" content="People in ethnolinguistic communities are vulnerable to HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases due in part to the lack of essential information in the mother tongue. Reading materials in local" /> <meta property="article:published_time" content="2012-08-13T18:20:35-05:00" /> <meta property="article:modified_time" content="2016-09-26T14:43:32-05:00" /> <title>Combat HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases | SIL Global</title> <link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="https://www.sil.org/sites/default/files/css/css_lQaZfjVpwP_oGNqdtWCSpJT1EMqXdMiU84ekLLxQnc4.css" media="all" /> <link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="https://www.sil.org/sites/default/files/css/css_EM9PzeHZt2AxxQ3R05nXINg9akBOG66G3hxOgWtlp2E.css" media="all" /> <link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="https://www.sil.org/sites/default/files/css/css_y-6OGvqwgwpR259lzJYNwvxpJm3Q1qOD_DWt90goRpM.css" media="all" /> <style>.panels-flexible-new .panels-flexible-region { padding: 0; } .panels-flexible-new .panels-flexible-region-inside { padding-right: 0.5em; padding-left: 0.5em; } .panels-flexible-new .panels-flexible-region-inside-first { padding-left: 0; } .panels-flexible-new 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</div> <a id="main-content"></a> <div class="region region-content"> <section id="block-system-main" class="block block-system clearfix"> <div class="panel-display panel-1col clearfix" > <div class="panel-panel panel-col"> <div><div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden"><div class="field-items"><div class="field-item even"><p><span>People in ethnolinguistic communities are vulnerable to HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases due in part to the lack of essential information in the mother tongue. Reading materials in local languages that discuss hygiene, nutrition,and the prevention and treatment of diseases have proven to be effective in improving general health and life expectancy. The availability of culturally-relevant information dispels misconceptions surrounding HIV/AIDS.</span></p> <h2>"This is one of the best stories in Bafut!"</h2> <p><img alt="African children without parents" class="align-left" height="120" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/african-children-no-parents.jpeg" style="float: left; padding: 2px;" title="African children without parents" width="423" />One day Becky Mfonyam started reading <em><span class="pubtitle">Kande</span>'s Story</em> to her hairdresser. When she stopped reading, the hairdresser asked, "Why did you stop? Keep reading. This is one of the best stories in Bafut!"</p> <p><em><span class="pubtitle">Kande</span></em> is the true-to-life story of a 12-year-old African girl who struggles to raise her younger brothers and sisters after their parents’ death from AIDS. The booklet is impacting lives in many communities by presenting the important message of HIV/AIDS prevention and treatment in a culturally appropriate story form.</p> <p>The story not only addresses the problems faced by HIV/AIDS, but it teaches people that they can resist the temptation to participate in extramarital relationships. Teachers have discovered that even if they read the story in a classroom of noisy students, the room will become completely quiet.</p> <p><em><span class="pubtitle">Kande</span>'s Story</em> has been translated into fifteen other languages of Cameroon as well as dozens of other languages across Africa and around the world. Lives are changed when communities take ownership of this emotionally-compelling vital health information</p> <p><a href="/system/files/reapdata/13/04/64/130464978076085460330369172582981470403/Kande_English_LearnerBook_2012.pdf" target="_blank">Read <em>Kande's Story</em> in English</a></p> <h2>"HIV/AIDS was speaking my mother tongue"</h2> <p><img alt="AIDS booklets in mother tongue" class="align-left" height="120" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/man-reading-aids-booklet.jpeg" style="padding: 2px; float: left;" title="AIDS booklets in mother tongue" width="290" />"Some years ago my elder brother passed on after a long illness. According to local custom, his next brother inherited his wife. He too passed away. The wife was accused of witchcraft, and later she too died. The three individuals presented the same symptoms before their death. In the community, people said it was the result of AIDS. I could not believe such a thing since we believed AIDS was an acronym for '<span class="itemlabel">A</span>merican <span class="itemlabel">I</span>nvention to <span class="itemlabel">D</span>iscourage <span class="itemlabel">S</span>ex.'</p> <p>"Then one day a man in our local church gave me a brochure on HIV/AIDS. This brochure in our mother tongue was developed by SIL Cameroon. That day, reading through it, the message was so clear and spoke directly to my heart. I understood that HIV/AIDS was speaking my mother tongue—meaning, it was a member of our community and present in our village. I wish I had read this brochure before; perhaps I could have saved at least one of my brothers' lives." Similar reports have come from other *language communities that have this AIDS brochure.</p> <p class="smalltext">*This AIDS brochure is published in 34 languages: Aghem, Bakossi, Bafut, Babanki, Bulu, Bum, Badwe'e, Cuvok, Fang (EG), Fulfulde Ajamiya, Fulfulde Romans, Hdi, Gemzek, Kako, Kejom, Kenyang, Kombe (EG), Lamnso', Mbembe, Mékaa, Meta', Moloko, Muyang, Nomaande, Ngomba, Nuasue, Nugunu, Numaala, Pinyin, Spanish (EG), Tuki, Tunen, Yambetta, Yemba</p> <h2>Informational DVD Dramatizes HIV/AIDS</h2> <div class="img-left"><img alt="Nukna people dancing" class="align-left" height="175" src="/sites/default/files/inline-images/nukna-people-dancing.jpeg" style="float: left; padding: 2px;" title="Nukna people dancing" width="215" />In a culture where information is often relayed through songs, dance and plays, the people of Papua New Guinea (PNG) are receiving life-saving education in a culturally relevant medium. A DVD titled <span class="pubtitle">Get AIDS—Get Trouble</span> dramatizes how HIV/AIDS affects the family when one member contracts the disease. Produced and performed in one of PNG's trade languages, Melanesian Pidgin, the DVD has been translated into several local languages.</div> <div class="img-left"> </div> <p>PNG is vulnerable to HIV/AIDS. Low literacy rates and lack of access to reliable media sources mean that many face this new sickness with misconceptions. A booklet that accompanies the DVD clearly describes causes, preventative measures, consequences and the care needed for victims. The booklet has now been translated and printed in more than 30 PNG languages. Funding from the National AIDS Council of PNG has helped to cover printing and distribution costs.</p> <p><strong>Related stories</strong></p> <ul> <li><a href="/literacy-and-education" target="_blank">Literacy and Education</a></li> <li><a href="https://www.sil.org/about/news/new-guiding-principles-international-development-sustainable-development-goals" target="_blank">New Guiding Principles for International Development</a></li> </ul> <p><br /> <a href="/node/606"><< BACK TO WHY LANGUAGES MATTER</a></p> </div></div></div></div> </div> </div> </section> </div> </section> </div> </div> <footer class="footer"> <div class="footer-top"> <div class="container"> <div class="region region-footer"> <section id="block-panels-mini-sil-bootstrap-footer-menu" class="block block-panels-mini clearfix"> <div class="panel-flexible panels-flexible-new clearfix" id="mini-panel-sil_bootstrap_footer_menu"> <div class="panel-flexible-inside panels-flexible-new-inside"> <div class="panels-flexible-row panels-flexible-row-new-main-row panels-flexible-row-first clearfix footer-links"> <div class="inside panels-flexible-row-inside panels-flexible-row-new-main-row-inside panels-flexible-row-inside-first clearfix"> <div class="panels-flexible-region panels-flexible-region-new-column_1 panels-flexible-region-first "> <div class="inside panels-flexible-region-inside panels-flexible-region-new-column_1-inside panels-flexible-region-inside-first"> <div class="panel-pane pane-block pane-block-276 pane-block footer-logo" > <div class="pane-content"> <p><img alt="" src="/sites/default/files/sil_logo_white.png" style="width: 100px; 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