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The United States Agency for International Development (USAID), the Lesotho Ministry of Health and Social Welfare (MOHSW), and the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation (EGPAF) are commemorating the conclusion of the five-year, $4.7 million Call to Action (CTA) project in Lesotho, and continuing their collaboration to begin the expansion of PMTCT and HIV/AIDS care and treatment project.

Lesotho has the third highest HIV <http://www.avert.org/hiv.htm> prevalence in the world - with about one in four of its citizens living with HIV, according to the 2010 United Nations General Assembly Special Session country progress report. The report also found that in 2008, there were around 21,000 new adult HIV infections and approximately 12,000 people died from AIDS <http://www.avert.org/aids.htm> . Over half of the 260,000 adults living with HIV in Lesotho are women <http://www.avert.org/women.htm> .

From late 2004 through early 2010, the USAID-funded CTA project assisted Lesotho's Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to establish and expand PMTCT services from an initial nine sites in the country to 103 health facilities covering the six districts of Berea, Butha-Buthe, Leribe, Maseru, Mokhotlong and Thaba Tseka. More than 55,000 pregnant women and 44,000 infants have been provided with antiretroviral prophylaxis for PMTCT through the project, and more than 135,000 individuals enrolled in care at Foundation-supported sites.

The Foundation has been awarded a new five-year expanded HIV/AIDS project by USAID with funding from the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), to continue to provide comprehensive and integrated HIV/AIDS care, treatment, and PMTCT services to people residing in the Kingdom of Lesotho.

The new Strengthening Clinical Services in Lesotho (SCS) project has ambitious targets to reach 200,000 HIV-positive individuals with HIV care services, testing 50,000 infants for HIV, and enrolling 75,000 people into HIV treatment.

The EGPAF-USAID partnership is a major boost to the government's efforts to reverse the HIV epidemic. The new project aims to support the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to expand PMTCT services to all healthcare facilities by 2011 in accordance with the national scale-up plan, making Lesotho one of only a few countries in Africa to reach this milestone. Through the Foundation, 2,000 male partners have been counseled and tested; those found to be HIV-positive have been enrolled or referred to care and treatment services, and encouraged by Male Support Groups at many sites - an innovation that has helped to encourage greater participation of men in PMTCT and antenatal care services.

"The success of the CTA project shows that it is possible to move closer to the goal of eliminating pediatric AIDS by delivering quality, comprehensive services - including prenatal care to pregnant women, and care and treatment for those already infected," said Charles Lyons, President and CEO of the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. "The involvement of families, communities, and governments is a critical component of reaching that success."
"We are grateful for the support of both USAID and the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare," said Leopold Buhendwa, Country Director in Lesotho for the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation. "This collaboration has improved the lives of countless women, children, and families in Lesotho and we look forward to continuing our successful partnership."
A press conference on these groundbreaking programs will be held on October 6th at Lesotho Sun Hotel at 4:00 p.m., followed by a cocktail reception at 6:00 p.m. The reception will feature a riveting photographic exhibition of people whose lives have been changed by this project, and special guests, include Dr. Mphu Ramatlapeng, Lesotho's Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Jeff Borns, the Mission Director of USAID Southern Africa, and Foundation President and CEO, Charles Lyons.

ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND

About the Call to Action Initiative:
The Foundation initiated Call to Action initiative began in 1999 in the United States with private funds as a multinational effort to prevent mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV, also known as vertical or perinatal transmission, in the parts of the world hardest hit by the AIDS pandemic. Additional financial support was provided to EGPAF by USAID through the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and private donors, such as the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Johnson & Johnson, Abbott Fund, Boehringer Ingelheim, UNICEF, Glaxo Smith Kline, Ronald McDonald House Charities, Jewelers for Children, and others. Under USAID funding, CTA scaled-up PMTCT programs in Cameroon, Côte d'Ivoire, Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, Russia, Rwanda, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

About the Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation:
The Elizabeth Glaser Pediatric AIDS Foundation is a global leader in the fight against pediatric HIV and AIDS, working in 17 countries to implement prevention, care, and treatment services; to further advance innovative research; and to execute strategic and targeted global advocacy activities to bring dramatic change to the lives of millions of women, children, and families worldwide.