‘Sesame Street’ Program in Nigeria Aims To Spread HIV/AIDS Awareness Messages to Children

The television show "Sesame Street" is launching a program in Nigeria -- called "The Adventures of Kami and Big Bird" -- that aims to teach children about HIV/AIDS, the Sunday Tasmanian reports. Supported by funding from the United States, the program will include original videos and workbooks. Kami -- a character from the South African version of the show, called Takalani Sesame -- is HIV-positive and also is an AIDS orphan. She aims to teach children how to deal with loss and grief using a child-friendly approach. The show is expected to reach 30,000 children in Nigeria, many of whom are orphans or vulnerable children. Educational consultant Ayobisi Osuntusa said that there are about 240,000 HIV cases reported among children in Nigeria. He added, "Education about this disease and how to prevent it needs to begin in early childhood, and who better to construct groundwork for the future than the organization that set the gold standard for educational programming?" (Sunday Tasmanian, 3/1).