A Dutch couple have received the Martin Buber Plaquette for their work helping AIDS patients in the South African Townships.

The couple, doctor Hugo Tempelman and his wife Liesje, built their first clinic in Johannesburg in 1994, providing medical care for 160,000 people.

They also set up a cultural centre in Soweto, to educate people about the HIV.

The prize is named after German philosopher Martin Buber and is for people who help others. Other winners include former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev and former German Chancellor Helmut Schmidt.

Photo: Soweto township - Flickr/seaturtle