President Bill Clinton, Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation, and Rwandan Government Announce HIV Partners
Partnership Will Focus On Assisting Rwandan Government with Antiretroviral Treatment Access as Part of Broader HIV Prevention Efforts
Sept. 25, 2002 — The Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation (PGAF), The William Jefferson Clinton Foundation (Clinton Foundation) and the Government of Rwanda today announced the formation of a formal partnership that will focus on developing Rwanda’s capacity to provide comprehensive HIV treatment and care, including the use of HIV antiretroviral drugs (ARVs) and to support the greater integration of treatment and care services with the country’s overall HIV prevention effort.
President Clinton announced the formal partnership in Rwanda where he is visiting medical facilities and meeting with government and non-governmental agencies involved in the country’s HIV effort.
“We are enormously excited about the strength and effectiveness of this new partnership with the Clinton Foundation,” said PGAF Chief Executive Officer, Eric Goosby, M.D. “President Clinton fully understands the devastating impact of HIV on the African continent and his commitment and involvement will be of tremendous value to the Rwandan people.”
In April, 2001, the Pangaea Global AIDS Foundation was invited by the Office of the First Lady of Rwanda, Madame Jeanette Kagame, and Dr. Ezechias Rwabuhihi of The Ministry of Health to provide technical assistance to a long-term government initiative to integrate comprehensive HIV treatment and care programs within the country’s existing health delivery structures.
“Pangaea has been working with the Rwandan Health Ministry to first develop several pilot HIV treatment and care sites in the capital city of Kigali,” Dr. Goosby explained. “The Clinton partnership will help support the broader expansion of these pilots from the Capital to Rwanda’s larger rural areas.” The Health Ministry is set to launch a multi-site pilot project that will provide comprehensive HIV treatment and care, including ARVs to 4,000 patients. Data from this initial effort will inform the government’s long-term goal to provide HIV care throughout the country.
The HIV/AIDS epidemic in Rwanda has posed a major challenge in a country yet recovering from the devastating effects of the 1994 genocide. Approximately 9% of Rwanda’s population (or 500,000 individuals) is infected with HIV, including 65,000 children under age 15 years. Women account for 58% of Rwanda’s total HIV infections. It is also estimated that 70% of the approximately 250,000 women who were raped during the genocide were infected with HIV.
Media Contact: Redge Norton, Media Relations Manager, San Francisco AIDS Foundation