Japanese Group Launches Appeal for African Soccer Program for AIDS Orphans

On Wednesday, the Japan-based Stop AIDS Organization announced a new program to help the 12 million African AIDS orphans by getting them involving in playing soccer. Tomiko Abe, the group's director, said she was inspired to use soccer to heal "the wounds on [the orphans'] heart" when, on a mission to Sierra Leone, she saw how delighted the children were to receive the gift of a soccer ball. "Even one football can give a dream to orphans," she said. Ambassadors from Ghana, Kenya, Zambia, and Mozambique have appealed for international support for the project. SAO has designed a special soccer ball, emblazoned with red AIDS ribbons, that will be used by the youth leagues and during the cup finals of participating countries.

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