American People Reaffirm Partnership with Tanzanians in AIDS Battle

                                                                                                            November 30, 2013

By Virginia Blaser

Every year on December 1, the global community commemorates World AIDS Day.  It is a day to reflect on lives lost, and lives forever changed, by HIV and AIDS.  It is also an opportunity to acknowledge the more than 34 million people living with HIV worldwide.  Today, we celebrate those lives saved in Tanzania and throughout the world, and we commend Tanzanians for their contributions and achievements in this global struggle.

As President Obama reinforced during his visit last July, Tanzania remains a key partner of the United States.  The U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, or PEPFAR, is a cornerstone of the United States’ investment in Tanzania.  In 2013 alone, PEPFAR’s care and support programs directly aided more than 990,000 people in Tanzania, including more than 330,000 orphans and vulnerable children.  The American people, in partnership with others, provide life-saving antiretroviral treatment for over 444,000 Tanzanians.  And this year alone, we have together tested and counseled more than five million Tanzanians, almost one and a half million of whom were pregnant Tanzanian women.  Due to our combined efforts, Tanzanians are less likely to be infected with HIV, and those living with HIV and AIDS are more likely to live full and healthy lives.

Today, an AIDS-free generation is in sight not only in Tanzania, but also around the world.  For example, thanks to global efforts of PEPFAR and its partners to prevent mother-to-child transmission (PMTCT), in 2013 we witnessed the millionth HIV-free baby born to an HIV-positive mother.  Furthermore, through scientific advances and national and individual behavioral changes, we have reached a tipping point in this epidemic.  By rapidly scaling up proven HIV interventions -- including treatment, PMTCT, condoms, testing and counseling, and voluntary medical male circumcision -- we can turn the tide on HIV and AIDS.

Over the last few years, Tanzania has made progress in the fight against AIDS, and the American people have been proud to play a supporting role.  This month, the U.S. Congress unanimously passed the PEPFAR Stewardship and Oversight Act which renews PEPFAR for an additional five years.  As Secretary of State John Kerry said recently: “A decade ago, PEPFAR created the world’s largest and most successful foreign assistance program ever for a single disease.  And now, a disease that at one time seemed to be unstoppable is actually in retreat.”

Even with such great progress, we cannot rest on past achievements.  In the coming year, we intend to work with the Government of Tanzania and development partners to increase the sustainability of our shared success.  The road to achieving an AIDS-free generation will not be easy, but strong partnerships like the collaboration between the American and Tanzanian peoples illustrate how we, by joining forces, can ultimately reach the goal of a Tanzania free of HIV.  I applaud the Government of Tanzania for the creation of the AIDS Trust Fund and look forward to working together to build a sustainable program.

On this World AIDS Day, I strongly reaffirm the partnership between the American and Tanzanian Peoples.  Together we can end this epidemic.

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Virginia Blaser is the Chargé d'Affaires ad interim of the United States Embassy in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.