Press Releases

U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator Ambassador Mark Dybul To Visit Lesotho

The U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator Ambassador, Ambassador Mark R. Dybul, will visit Lesotho from January 22 to 24, 2008.  As the Global AIDS Coordinator, Ambassador Dybul leads the implementation of the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), an initiative which funded $13 million of anti-AIDS efforts in Lesotho last fiscal year.
During his stay, Ambassador Dybul will visit a number of PEPFAR-funded sites, including the Queen Elizabeth II hospital, a footwear factory in Maputsoe, and a rural community-based project in Ketane.

Under PEPFAR, the U.S. Government has committed $18.8 billion to the global fight against HIV/AIDS, exceeding its original commitment of $15 billion over five years. This commitment reaffirms the United States' historic leadership in the global fight against HIV/AIDS.  President George W. Bush has requested that Congress reauthorize PEPFAR for five additional years and $30 billion additional dollars, which would bring the American people's 10-year commitment on HIV/AIDS to more than $48 billion.

In Lesotho, PEPFAR Lesotho works closely with the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, the National AIDS Commission (NAC), and other stakeholders to implement key areas of Lesotho’s 2006-2011 National HIV/AIDS Strategic Plan.  The emphasis of this plan is HIV prevention, the integration of TB and HIV service delivery, and universal access to HIV counseling and testing.  In the goals, PEPFAR works closely with the Millennium Challenge Corporation, which will invest $362.5 million in Lesotho over the next five years.