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Sir Richard's Condom Company Announces Inaugural Condom Donation to Haiti

Mon, 13 Feb 2012 11:19:43 EST

New York, NY (February 13, 2012) — Sir Richard's announced today its donation of 500,000 condoms to Haiti.  The donation will be made available for free at Partners In Health's (PIH) clinics including the Mirebalais National Teaching Hospital, built by PIH in collaboration with Haiti's Ministry of Health.  Scheduled to arrive in late spring, the condom donation marks Sir Richard's first step in helping address the global shortage of condoms in developing countries by donating a condom for every one purchased.
 
In addition to helping bridge the need gap for condoms, Sir Richard's aims to deliver a product and brand that is culturally relevant to Haitians, thus promoting usage.  Sir Richard's worked with Marc Baptiste, the company's creative director to Haiti, a Port-au-Prince native, and acclaimed artists, to create the brand KORE, (pronounced kȯr-ā) which is a slang term that translates as 'I have your back.' The packaging also incorporates Haitian Kréyòl messaging and visual instructions.
 
'At the heart of Sir Richard's is our belief that the power of business can not only deliver a quality product, but can also help serve the global community,' said Jim Moscou, CEO of Sir Richard's.  'Delivering KORE is the first step in seeing that vision come to fruition.'
 
The KORE condoms will be distributed through Partners in Health (PIH), the esteemed international NGO and its Haitian sister organization, Zanmi Lasante ('Partners In Health' in Haitian Kréyòl).  Zanmi Lasante has been delivering quality healthcare in rural Haiti for more than twenty-five years.
 
'Within the last year, Partners In Health has treated more than 6,300 HIV-positive patients in Haiti. Reinforcing the importance of condom use and ensuring that condoms are available and accessible is key in our battle against the spread of HIV/AIDS. PIH is deeply grateful for Sir Richard's partnership in this mission, 'said Christopher Hamon, Haiti Procurement Coordinator for  Partners In Health.  
 
'Haiti is the closest thing to my heart.  I want to help the country progress in any and every way possible.  And working with Sir Richard's, we are able to help bring people together -- through trust, love, and protection,' said Marc Baptiste, creative director to Haiti for Sir Richard's.
 
'We are humbled and inspired by the incredible work of Partners In Health,' said Mathew Gerson, co-founder of Sir Richard's.  'With a mission of providing the world's best medical care to those most in need,  it is our great honor to support their work.'
 
Inspired by Partners In Health's work and taking into account various economic and social factors, Sir Richard's identified Haiti as its first donation site.  Here is an overview of key facts:

• Zanmi Lasante initiated its work in Haiti over 25 years ago, and is renowned for launching the world's first program to provide free, comprehensive HIV care and treatment in an impoverished setting. (www.pih.org)
• According to data released by the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), Haiti has seen a spike in pregnancies following the 2009 earthquake.  In the study, conducted in July 2010 of 2391 women in 120 camps, almost 12 percent reported being pregnant.  Unfortunately, two thirds of the pregnancies were unwanted. 
• In a statement from Igor Bosc, the UNFPA representative in Haiti, said, 'We need to ensure that more condoms are available and to raise awareness of the importance of this method of contraception, because it obviously has a direct impact on the transmission of HIV.'