An urgent push is underway to raise five-thousand dollars for The Spirit of Malabo, which will be the engine for a global HIV testing campaign.

Brooklyn, New York – , a 24′ ocean rowboat, arrives in Brooklyn, New York next week aboard MSC Krystal from Brazil. The vessel will be the engine behind a global HIV testing campaign during a transatlantic row later this year from the Canary Islands to New York’s Brooklyn Bridge.

Kingsborough Community College, Maritime Technology Program has teamed up with the Goree Challenge IV – Spirit of Malabo project to provide technical assistance. A cadre of season maritime professionals and students will install the electronics aboard this vessel. Afterwards, the project will also benefit from the services of SUNY Maritime College.

“In these difficult times, it’s very humbling to have the support of two paramount institutions”, said , rower for the Spirit of Malabo.

“After the technical installation, I will train for several months in the Atlantic Ocean prior to shipping the boat to the Canary Islands“, Mooney added.

Today, an estimated 34 million people worldwide live with HIV/AIDS, with more than two-thirds living in developing countries. Nearly three-fourths of the 2.5 million new HIV infections in 2011 occurred in these countries. More than 1.1 million people in the U.S. are infected with HIV and hundreds of thousands don’t know it.

The Spirit of Malabo was designed by Roberto Barros and built by Flab – Construção Artesanal de Embarcações. Custom clearance formalities in the Port of New York and transportation of the vessel to Kingsborough Community College in Brooklyn are being coordinated by DSV Air & Sea Inc.DSV is a global supplier of transport and logistics solutions. With offices in more than 70 countries all over the world and an international network of partners and agents, which makes them a global player offering services worldwide. For professional and advantageous overall solutions, the approx. 22,000 DSV employees recorded worldwide annual revenue of 6 billion euro for 2012.