Clinton Launches Programs to Put More HIV-Positive Children on Antiretroviral Treatment in Kenya, Rwanda

Former President Clinton on Saturday launched a program to double the number of HIV-positive children receiving antiretroviral drugs in Kenya and announced that the Clinton Foundation will donate a year's supply of antiretrovirals to treat 2,500 HIV-positive children in Rwanda, VOA News reports (VOA News, 7/23). While visiting Kenya -- which has about 100,000 HIV-positive children, only 1,200 of whom are on antiretroviral drugs -- Clinton announced that his foundation will provide treatment for about 1,000 additional children (AP/USA Today, 7/23). The program will provide pediatric formulations of antiretroviral drugs purchased at a discount through a partnership with Cipla, an India-based generic drug manufacturer (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 7/22). Clinton, who made the announcement with Kenyan Health Minister Charity Ngilu at the state-run Mbagathi District Hospital in Nairobi, also said the foundation will work to provide necessary health care equipment and train health care workers in rural areas of the country, where many HIV-positive people live (AFP/Yahoo! News [1], 7/23). Clinton said that among the countries his foundation has worked with, few have "done as well as Kenya has done in commitment to the fight against HIV/AIDS" (Xinhuanet, 7/23).

Rwanda, Initiative Details
Clinton announced the Rwandan initiative later on Saturday, while visiting the Treatment and Research AIDS Center, Rwanda's national agency for the management and coordination of HIV/AIDS treatment and care. He said he wanted Rwanda to be a model for other African countries in combating HIV/AIDS. "The size of the country and the incredible confidence of the commitment of the government make it much more likely that we can succeed in this area," he said (AFP/Yahoo! News [2], 7/23). Both initiatives are part of the foundation's goal to provide antiretroviral treatment to 10,000 HIV-positive children worldwide by the end of this year. The announcements came at the end of Clinton's six-nation tour of Africa, which also took him to Mozambique, South Africa, Tanzania and Lesotho (Kaiser Daily HIV/AIDS Report, 7/22).


CBS on Friday published video footage of Clinton's visit with Kenyan President Mwai Kibaki. The segment includes comments from Clinton (CBS, 7/22). The video is available online in RealPlayer.

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