Key public and private sector stakeholders in the Eastern Cape have signed an agreement to unite and strengthen efforts to fight HIV and AIDS in the province.

The Eastern Cape AIDS Council and the SA Business Coalition on HIV and AIDS (SABCOHA) co-hosted a meeting on Wednesday attended by among others Cosatu, the local Amathola Municipality and the provincial health department.

The agreement was signed by the provincial AIDS Council, SABCOHA, the Eastern Cape Development Corporation and inWEnt.

It is set to develop a capacity development initiative funded by the German government to create mechanisms and resources to deliver capacity development in three sectors across the province.

The sectors include construction, agriculture and the automotive industry.

The meeting was also supported by DaimlerChrysler SA, one of the biggest employers in the region.

The company has extensive experience in partnership initiatives to fight the disease, both because of its own workplace programme and the new supply chain initiative which targets small, micro and medium enterprises (SMMEs).

"SABCOHA and its members - especially DaimlerChrysler – are enthusiastic about the finalisation of this public-private partnership which will address the needs of three most important economic sectors in the Eastern Cape,” said the business coalition.

This development paves the way for the province to respond to the epidemic comprehensively.

“We look forward to working closely with labour, the civil society, employers and provincial and local government structures to create new skills and further its management of the epidemic," said Brad Mears, SABCOHA CEO.