NEW DELHI: The UN Children's Fund has announced the launch of a computer game for young people aimed at helping them make better choices to combat diseases like AIDS.
The game is available in English and Swahili versions at unicef.org/voy/explore/aids/explore_1360.html
In its Swahili version, Ungefanyaje (What would you do?) takes the player through a series of relationship-based scenarios that emphasize the importance of HIV-prevention and testing.
"Translating the game into Swahili makes it accessible to East African adolescents and young people," Voices of Youth coordinator Amber Oliver said.
Voices of Youth, or VOY, is a decade-old initiative focused on exploring the educational and community building potential of the Internet.
Through web boards, interactive quizzes, youth leadership profiles, live chats and more, VOY says it "provides thousands of people from over 180 countries with an opportunity to self-inform, engage in lively debate, and partner - with their peers and decision makers - to create a world fit for children".
An alarming 80 percent of youth don't know how to protect themselves from the virus.
It is estimated that of the 2.3 million under 15 children living with HIV, 2 million are in sub-Saharan Africa.
Some early responses to the game commented on the need to use a form of Swahili comprehensible across the region, and the need to make the game work on mobile phones.
Computer games have also been called 'edutainment' because of their mix of education and entertainment.
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