Chief Executive Officer of the International Cricket Council, Malcolm Speed, shakes hands with students from the Children First Vocational Training School in Spanish Town, St. Catherine, after a brief tour of the school on Wednesday. - Ian Allen/Staff Photographer

Rasbert Turner, Gleaner Writer

SPANISH TOWN, St. Catherine:

Chief Executive Officer of the International Cricket Council (ICC), Malcolm Speed, says it is necessary for cricketers to increase awareness of AIDS, as 30 per cent of persons living with the disease are from 10 of the cricket-playing nations, with South Africa and India leading this group.

Mr. Speed was speaking to journalists at Children First in Spanish Town, St. Catherine, on Wednesday, during a 'United for Children, Unite Against AIDS' workshop put on by the ICC and United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) to highlight the plight of children affected by the AIDS pandemic.

Need to educate children

"With this statistic then, it is very interesting to note that cricketers and other influential persons need to be educating children especially, to keep away the stigma affecting persons affected by HIV/AIDS. And I am pleased with Children First on the work they are doing in this regard," he said.

While echoing the views of the cricketing executive, a UNICEF representative told The Gleaner that the aim of the programme is to work with children in efforts to increase their knowledge about the disease. This will be done through lectures and counselling sessions.

He also praised the work of the ICC and lauded the efforts of the Children First, whose representatives use the 'Bashy Bus', which goes around several communities to educate persons on the problem of HIV/AIDS and the necessity of getting tested.