The diamond mining company De Beers has matched the commitment of the Anglo American group (as reported here) to provide HAART for HIV-positive workers employed by the company in South Africa and elsewhere. The two companies are linked, in that Anglo American owns 45% of De Beers' shares. However, De Beers' policy has been planned in its own right.
A further 15% of De Beers is owned by the Debswana Diamond Company, a joint venture between De Beers and the Botswana government, which is already providing antiretroviral treatment for its staff in Botswana and is a major partner in Botswana's national response to HIV and AIDS.
De Beers will be following Debswana in requiring a 10% contribution to the cost of treatment from employees who take it up. Treatment will be available to any permanent employee of the company and to their "spouse or life partner". The company is committed to an initial programme running for two years from January 2003, to be reviewed in the light of medical and other developments - obviously, in the hope that national treatment access plans will emerge.
De Beers' Managing Director, Gary Ralfe, says: "The provision of anti-retroviral treatment is a moral and humanitarian issue aimed at extending lives and improving the quality of life for infected employees. But it is important to recognise that it is only one aspect of a comprehensive approach by De Beers to employee health and wellness."
De Beers' established HIV/AIDS policy provides for non-discrimination on grounds of HIV status, workplace peer-education and training on HIV in company time, and attention to broader health issues for all employees, such as fitness and nutrition, in the knowledge that these are of particular importance for HIV-positive employees.
Implementation of the programme will be subject to further consultation with government and relevant trade unions. The South African trade union federation, COSATU, has welcomed Anglo American's previous commitment and is also a supporter of the Treatment Action Campaign (TAC). TAC is now pressing for a national plan for access to treatment for people with HIV and AIDS.
Further information is available from De Beers here. The Treatment Action Campaign has a website here.