Holding a child in her arms, Victoria Beckham is pictured on a field mission in Ethiopia, meeting people who are living with HIV and AIDS.
The fashion designer, who shared these candid snaps in support of World AIDS Day, visited clinics, NGOs and social businesses during her trip to Africa
– and saw first-hand how access to medical treatment can be life-changing.
In another image, the 41-year-old mother-of-four can be seen receiving a red rose from a little boy – while in another, she sits and chats with teenagers.
Mrs Beckham visited Ethiopia with the Executive Director of UNAIDS, Michel Sidibé, where they met with children,
adolescents and adults who told them about the challenges of living with and being affected by HIV and AIDS.
On the back of her trip, and in support of World AIDS Day on Tuesday, Mrs Beckham has created a limited-edition key ring, priced at £165, and a T-shirt, which costs £90, featuring exclusive artwork.
As the award-winning fashion designer is a UNAIDS Global Goodwill Ambassador, all proceeds from the sale the items will benefit the initiatives and organisations supported by UNAIDS.
Speaking about her charitable aims, the former Spice Girl said: ‘The world has committed to end the AIDS epidemic as part of the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals and I truly believe this is a real possibility.
‘We have come such a long way in the fight against AIDS. Huge global efforts have created proven results, and more and more people are accessing treatment and prevention services. But we are not there yet.
‘There are still people being left behind due to gender inequalities, stigma and discrimination and lack of resources,’ Mrs Beckham, Who was honoured for her humanitarian work with UNAIDS at the Glamour Women Of The Year Awards this month, added.
‘In my role as a UNAIDS Goodwill Ambassador I am proud to take a stand, speaking up for change and pushing on towards our common goal of ending AIDS.’
UNAIDS and Victoria have also released a short video documentary to raise awareness on HIV and AIDS.
Victoria speaks out about the success and challenges to end the AIDS epidemic.
Today 37 million people are living with HIV around the world and 2 million people are newly infected with HIV every year.
Mrs Beckham has been involved in the response to HIV for more than a decade. In 2014 she was appointed a UNAIDS International Goodwill Ambassador to help raise awareness and funds towards UNAIDS strategy to end the AIDS epidemic as a public health threat by 2030.
This is by no means the first of Victoria’s charitable endeavours.
In February last year, following an invitation from Vogue editor Anna Wintour and American Vogue to visit South Africa, Victoria met mothers2mothers (m2m) founder, Dr. Mitch Besser.
The charity trains, employs and empowers Mentor Mothers, who are mothers living with HIV, in order to educate them on how to prevent the transmission of HIV from mothers to babies and improve the health of women and their families.
Victoria was so moved by the experience that she wanted to do all she could to raise money and awareness.
Speaking about the cause at the time, she said: ‘After spending just a few days with these remarkable women and learning more about the charity from Mitch, and his lovely wife Annie Lennox, I wanted to do as much as I could. It really was a life-changing experience; I’ve never experienced anything like it.’
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Source: Los Angeles Times
