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I used to smile at the sentimental nickname for Lesotho, “The Mountain Kingdom.” Following a few visits to the capital Maseru, I had the opportunity to travel to the district of Mokhotlong, in the east of the country. Here I discovered that this term is more literal than symbolic, and no laughing matter. Narrow gravel roads with incredible switchback turns had me engaging in lively discussion in the car to avoid thinking about how close I was to the edge.

"All the people we need to make a difference in HIV globally are sitting in this room," said Paul Waibale, Deputy Director of the Building Local Capacity Project (BLC), during the opening of the SADC HIV prevention workshop "New evidence, new thinking."

The final day of the summit: the turnout was quite good despite it being a public holiday (Human Rights Day) in South Africa. I began the day by attending a panel discussion exploring the future after 2015, when the current Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) expire. By 2015, new global development goals need to be drafted, and it seems the best we can hope for is one all-encompassing health goal without any specific mention of HIV.

This case brings new hope for young children infected with HIV. We eagerly await further research on these findings and whether the experience of the child can be replicated in clinical trials involving other HIV-exposed children.

Millions of people around the world will be celebrating International Women’s Day on March 8th.

One of the smallest countries in Africa, Lesotho has been one of those hardest-hit by the HIV epidemic. High mortality rates have resulted in an orphan crisis: children left without one or both parents. Families and communities have been devastated by the effects of HIV, threatening livelihoods and even survival. The women of Lesotho have risen to the challenge. Grandmothers are caring for multiple orphans, and women, who may be living with HIV and AIDS themselves, are forming support groups and providing home-based care in their communities.

Harriet Kunene, Head of Programmes of the AIDS Information and Support Centre (TASC), was among the trainers facilitating a one day training session at the Nkamanzi kaGogo centre in Swaziland for more than 20 community-based health educators on 13 February 2013.

The training session was aimed at preparing health educators to rapidly scale up access to HIV Testing and Counseling (HTC), and Antiretroviral Therapy (ART) services in their communities. Topics covered included:

The incidence of HIV in Swaziland has stabilized, but the country continues to have the world’s highest estimated prevalence rate of HIV-infected adults. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 26 percent of adults aged 15 to 49-years old in Swaziland are HIV-positive.

We have seen some remarkable gains in global health in 2012. Yet millions of women, children, and men still die from preventable causes. As we pause and reflect on 2012 and look ahead to the new year, I invite you to read and share some of our favorite blog posts from the year.

Thursday, 6 December 2012, was a very special day in Lesotho’s capital city, Maseru. Greeted by vibrant music and bright banners, guests arrived at the offices of Phela Health and Development Communications to attend the official launch of the Senakangoeli HIV and AIDS Resource Center.

World AIDS Day in Swaziland has a particularly profound meaning, as Swaziland has the highest HIV prevalence rate in the world. The recent PEPFAR-supported Swaziland Health Incidence Measurement Survey (SHIMS) -- the first such comprehensive survey of its kind on the impact of key HIV prevention programs -- indicates that 31 percent of the adult population is living with HIV.

World AIDS Day serves as a reminder to all individuals that we are all affected by the pandemic and the only way to win the battle with HIV and AIDS is by working together.

November 29, 2012 - Success motivates action. All of us are much more willing to continue to invest in something that has produced results than in something that hasn’t.

This past May I traveled to Zambia and had the chance to see my taxpayer dollars hard at work – saving and improving lives.

I wanted to see, and learn, how “combination prevention” helps stop the spread of HIV. It’s actually pretty common sense stuff; when multiple interventions are used together, the likelihood of HIV transmission is greatly reduced.

One young rape survivor in a camp for the internally displaced in Goma, a city in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), is one of the strongest people I have met since joining USAID as Senior Coordinator. She survived a vicious gang rape while collecting fuelwood in the surrounding forest. She only saw a doctor after receiving contributions to pay for treatment from fellow impoverished camp residents. She survives by selling dung briquettes—though she earns less than she did from fuelwood— because she is too afraid for her safety to go back to the forest for wood.