Dumelang, Bagaetsho!
It is a pleasure to be here with all of you to commemorate the long-standing partnership between the United States and the Government of Botswana, and to celebrate the momentous success of Botswana’s HIV response. Since the HIV/AIDS epidemic began in 1981, more than 84 million people worldwide have been infected with the virus and approximately 40 million people have died from AIDS related illnesses, including more than 310,000 in Eastern and Southern Africa in 2021 alone.
