Press Release: President Clinton and President Preval Sign Agreement to Expand HIV/AIDS Services and Strengthen Health Systems in Haiti

Port-au-Prince, Haiti – President Bill Clinton signed a Memorandum of Understanding today with President Rene Preval and the government of Haiti. The agreement invites the Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative (CHAI) to provide on the ground programmatic and technical support to the Government of Haiti, to help expand access to HIV/AIDS care and treatment services and strengthen the systems required to deliver primary health care services.

“My Foundation’s global AIDS work began in the Bahamas, the setting for one of the great success stories in the fight against HIV/AIDS,” President Clinton said. “I am confident that by using the same approach that is currently helping 2 million people access lifesaving treatment around the world, we can achieve the same success in Haiti. I look forward to working alongside the government of Haiti to strengthen health systems and save more lives.”

“We are very pleased that President Clinton is working with us to help strengthen health services for HIV/AIDS patients in Haiti,” said President Rene Preval. “We look forward to working with the Clinton Foundation to respond to the needs of the Haitian people.”

Haiti currently has one of the highest HIV prevalence rates in the region, at 2.2 percent, and only half of those in need of care and treatment are receiving it. Furthermore, less than half of pregnant women deliver in a health facility, meaning that access remains low to services that can prevent mother-to-child transmission, while maternal mortality remains high.

In close collaboration with the government, CHAI will establish a country office in Haiti with the goal of helping to increase access to essential health services. CHAI will support the government in strategic planning and resource optimization, and will focus on vulnerable populations such as pregnant women and children. The program builds on CHAI’s continuing commitment to the region. CHAI currently works in four other Caribbean countries, recently supporting the Dominican Republic to put more than 200 children on treatment and nearly doubling the coverage of testing for infants. Similarly, in the Bahamas CHAI has supported the Ministry of Health to initiate rapid testing for the first time, while also helping the government to reduce its ARV costs by nearly $1 million.

Globally, The Clinton HIV/AIDS Initiative focuses its efforts in two main areas: access programs aimed at lowering the prices of drugs and diagnostic tests for HIV/AIDS and other illnesses; and country programs focused on assisting governments to develop the plans, policies, and systems required for high-quality, national HIV/AIDS care and treatment programs. More than 2 million people are now benefitting from medicines purchased under CHAI agreements, and Haiti has had access to affordable drugs and diagnostics through CHAI’s negotiated prices since 2003. This agreement marks the first time a country program has been established there. Haiti will join over 20 other countries that have partnered with CHAI to build better-functioning health systems.

President Clinton began working as the United Nations Special Envoy for Haiti in June 2009.

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