President Clinton Provides Important Message to International Conference on AIDS and STDs in Africa

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 13, 1999 (4:28 PM)
Contact: (202) 456-2437

WASHINGTON - President Clinton requested that an important message be presented to the over 5,000 participants in the 11th Annual Conference on AIDS and STDs in Africa (ICASA) in Lusaka, Zambia.

The message was delivered to the conference yesterday afternoon (Lusaka time) by Vivian Derryck, Assistant Administrator for USAID's Bureau for Africa. The President called on government leaders, private corporations, foundations, international organizations, community groups, and affected individuals to join together to battle AIDS. The President referenced a new international AIDS initiative just announced by the Administration, and called on other G-8 nations to make their own important contributions to the global battle against AIDS. The President also pledged that the United States would continue to do all that it can as a partner in that struggle.

ICASA brings together government leaders, public health experts, and community representatives to focus on the social and community aspects of the AIDS pandemic, and to look at some of the key determinants of the spread of HIV and STDs in Africa.

A copy of the message is attached, and will also available on the ONAP web site (www.whitehouse.gov/ONAP).