The Vodafone Group Foundation is donating £480,000 to Kick 4 Life over the next three years, enabling the charity to reach thousands of orphans and vulnerable children in Lesotho, southern Africa.

The funding will enable Kick 4 Life to test 25,000 people for HIV through its Test Your Team campaign which runs large football tournaments for youth with on-site HIV education and testing between matches. Those who test positive are referred immediately to counseling and life-saving anti-retroviral treatment.

Kick 4 Life will also be able to target more than 125,000 youth through its six week sports and activity-based curriculum which teaches HIV prevention messages and breaks down stigma surrounding the disease.

Pete Fleming, Kick 4 Life Director said: “This much appreciated support from The Vodafone Foundation will enable us to expand our activities in hard to reach rural village communities, reduce the length of queues at our testing events and work with groups at risk, especially boys from the age of 15 upwards.”

Andrew Dunnett, Director of The Vodafone Foundation added: “This is a fantastic opportunity for The Vodafone Foundation to support an innovative project which is already making a difference in a nation that has been devastated by HIV. Kick 4 Lifes programme emphasises the power of sport as a mechanism to reach youngsters across the globe to educate.”