Mogae visits pay P1bn dividends - Merafhe

He said that during a recent trip to the United States of America by President Mogae, the partners in the Africa Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnership, (ACHAP) such as Bill and Melinda Gates and Merk Company Foundation renewed their partnership with Botswana until 2009 and pledged additional P39 million on top of the P300 million they had each contributed in the first five years of the ACHAP programme. The total contribution of ACHAP partners since its inception is presently P678 million, Merafhe said.

He added that through The Presidential Emergency Relief Fund for AIDS (PEPFAR), the US government has since 2004 provided Botswana with financial assistance to the tune of P1.2billion towards the fight against AIDS. "There are indications that the annual financial support Botswana will get under PEPFAR will again increase during the fiscal year 2008 increase by P396 million," the minister said. The reintroduction of the Peace Corps programme followed President Mogae's appeal to US President George W Bush.