Global AIDS - Boswana

Merck Helps to Battle HIV on Two Fronts in Botswana

More muscle is being put behind both prevention and treatment efforts to fight the impact of HIV/AIDS on the African nation of Botswana. The African Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnerships (ACHAP) funded by The Merck Company Foundation and the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in conjunction with the Government of Botswana, is making progress in both areas.

According to government statistics, four in ten Botswana students become infected with HIV between the time they begin their school careers and when they graduate.

So ACHAP - founded in 2000 - and its partner organizations are taking bold steps to equip educators to help students better understand HIV and AIDS. In partnership with the Botswana Ministry of Education, the United Nations Development Program and Botswana TV, the partnership helped create "Talk Back," an interactive television program transmitted to the country's educational institutions.

A part of the Teacher Capacity Building Program, "Talk Back" educates teachers about HIV/AIDS and provides a comprehensive educational curriculum for use in Botswana's classrooms. Teachers and students learn about HIV/AIDS in ways that help de-stigmatize the disease and support students impacted by the virus. At present, 400 of Botswana's 979 educational institutions have begun the program.

The partnership is also helping to improve Botswana's healthcare infrastructure to facilitate better HIV/AIDS treatment. Last month, with funding through the partnership, a new Infectious Disease Control Center (IDCC) was opened at the Princess Marina Hospital, Botswana's largest hospital, in the capital city of Gaborone. The new center doubles the hospital's capacity to treat HIV clients and provides space for private counseling, pharmacy services and reception areas, as well as a resource center that assists in patient and family education.

According to UNAIDS, approximately 330,000 of Botswana's 1.7 million citizens are infected with HIV, with an estimated 110,000 residents currently in need of antiretroviral (ARV) treatment. In addition to the Princess Marina Hospital IDCC expansion, the partnership is sponsoring the construction of three additional hospital-based ARV treatment centers and 16 satellite clinics.

"Behavior change and patient education are central elements in the fight against HIV/AIDS," commented Dr. Donald de Korte, ACHAP project leader. "Talk Back" and the Princess Marina Hospital IDCC expansion are two recent additions to the partnership's comprehensive approach to fighting HIV/AIDS in Botswana.

The partnership is one of Merck's many corporate responsibility activities that are having a positive impact on improving health throughout the world. To learn more about the partnership, go to www.achap.org. To learn more about Merck's initiatives, visit the Corporate Responsibility Web site at www.merck.com/about/cr/.