The US government has announced a R19 million investment towards expanding South Africa's televised HIV and AIDS education.

The funding is set to expand the Health Channel, a satellite broadcast channel, delivering free HIV and AIDS education to patients and health care workers in clinics and hospitals in the country.

The funding is part of President George Bush's emergency plan for global AIDS relief that is being done through the United States Agency for International Development (USAID).

Speaking in Johannesburg today, US ambassador to South Africa Cameron Hume said the HIV pandemic was putting South Africa's public health care system under huge strain.

"Many health care workers who work in under resourced environments need more training on the disease and many patients will benefit from health promotion and education," said Mr Hume.

He said the funding would create the foundation for a sustainable, mass scale public health intervention, tackling all major health issues.

The education project was launched last year, following the successful piloting of the infrastructure in 56 healthcare institutions in the country.

This in a partnership between the National Department of Health, Mindset Network and Sentech, a commercial state-owned enterprise that provides telecommunications services.

Mindset Network is a partnership led by Liberty and Standard Bank Foundations that provides social, personal and economic upliftment of all South Africans through better education.

Future aims are to establish the Health Channel in all 4 000 public health care sites in South Africa within five years, serving 97 000 nurses and 36 million citizens who rely on the public sector.

The potential also exists for the channel to be extended across the African continent.

Mindset Network Chairperson Hylton Appelbaum said although the launching of the channel was not the first or the largest step towards fighting HIV and AIDS, it certainly was an important one.

"This financial boost will enable us to produce and broadcast significant new educational material on HIV and AIDS, in a war against ignorance, a war we cannot afford to lose," he said.

The Health Channel will be publicly launched later this year.

Issued by: GCIS (Government Communication and Information System)- BuaNews