CASEINPOINT
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DECEMBER 2006
: The Role of Business in Combating HIV/AIDS
The global HIV/AIDS epidemic is unquestionably a human tragedy, with few parallels in the sheer scope of physicaland emotional pain that it inflicts on the 40 million people living with HIV and their caretakers. But it is also one of the most significant economic and business issues of our time. UNAIDS reports that in countries with HIV-prevalence rates of 20 percent or higher, such as Botswana, Lesotho, and Swaziland, GDP is dropping an averageof 2.6 percentage points annually. This disruption to the economic stability of nations can result in considerablesocial unrest.It’s well-known that HIV/AIDS is already a significant economic and business issue in Africa. But globalbusiness leaders are increasingly becoming aware that if the AIDS epidemic spreads at the same speed to poverty-stricken and healthcare-challenged nations like China, Russia, or India, major sales and labor markets and sourcesof supply could be severely compromised. Fearful of this, a growing number of multinational corporations areviewing HIV/AIDS as a looming commercial disaster.Recognizing the importance and implications of HIV/AIDS for their businesses, many corporations are takingaction. For example, more than 200 major global corporations belong to the Global Business Coalition onHIV/AIDS, an organization that is dedicated to increasing awareness and action by businesses to address thepandemic. Booz Allen Hamilton’sextensive workwith the GBC and other stakeholders in the fight against HIV/AIDSdemonstrates that successful business initiatives to help address the HIV/AIDS challenge incorporate two majorlessons.First, business can’t succeed alone. The business community must cooperate with, and build on theexpertise of, governments, the health-care sector, civil society, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) likethe Gates Foundation.The GBC and Booz Allen have sponsored several major events targeted at building cooperative actionprograms. For instance, they worked with the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) to hold a strategic simulation,involving more than 200 people from the federal and regional governments of India, Indian industry, multinationalindustry, and NGOs. The teams looked at the current state of HIV/AIDS in India and simulated how the epidemiccould progress over the next 10 years. Together, they addressed the lack of trust and understanding amongsectors; the ways in which the stigma around HIV/AIDS is detrimental to prevention, testing, and treatment; theneed for care and treatment options; how to properly scale up health-care infrastructure; and the ways in whichHIV/AIDS can be transformed from a fatal disease into a chronic disease. Ultimately, the simulation resulted inmore than 50 cooperative initiatives targeted at providing a comprehensive response to HIV/AIDS in India.Second, business efforts to help fight HIV/AIDS fare best when organizations bring their core capabilitiesto bear on the problem in local regions. They should use the full range of their skills, including leadership, areas of expertise, and resources, to address specific community needs.For instance, manufacturing companies are highly integrated into the economic and social fabric of thecommunities where their plants are located. As a result, these firms are often able to piggyback on their existingin-country relationships and networks to provide mechanisms for health-care delivery and comprehensiveprevention, testing, and treatment programs. As an example, Tata Steel in India is using its existing employeehealth systems to deliver HIV/AIDS awareness and diagnostic programs throughout communities in India and totrain additional staff to help carry this message to outlying regions. In addition, building on this infrastructure, TataSteel has also developed a “Safe Highway” project to establish HIV/AIDS clinics targeted at truck drivers, who haveabove-average rates of HIV/AIDS prevalence in India.Companies that do not have extensive manufacturing infrastructures are pursuing other types of programs, consistent with their regional and local skills and capabilities. For example, many companies aredeveloping HIV/AIDS education, prevention, and treatment programs for their workforces and, in many cases, forthe workforces of major suppliers. Companies with advertising and media experience are contributing to targetedpublic awareness and prevention campaigns. Leading companies continue to find that they can make substantivecontributions, consistent with their areas of expertise.For a disease as complex and insidious as HIV/AIDS, the business community can be only a part of thesolution. It is nevertheless an important part, and the leadership roles that many businesses are taking in the fightagainst the disease are critical to the success of programs to reduce the stigma associated with the disease, toincrease awareness and prevention, and to encourage diagnosis and treatment.
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