AIDS Clinic Opens in Remote Area of Botswana

In remote northwest Botswana, an AIDS clinic opened Friday to provide access to free AIDS drugs. Thirty-eight percent of Botswana's people are infected -- the highest rate in the world -- and the clinic is part of the government's strategy to battle the epidemic. The clinic, which is an extension of the Maun General Hospital, will "extend the government's capacity to reach out to those infected and affected across North Western Botswana," said Donald Korte, who heads the AIDS-fighting partnership that comprises Botswana's government, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, and Merck & Co. Botswana is providing the first wide-scale free access to AIDS dugs in Africa. Also, the Botswana Family Welfare Association on Friday introduced a documentary, "Life Is a Gift," which focuses on how young people are fighting the stigma of living with AIDS.

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