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United States senators Bill Frist and Lamar Alexander have pledged to use their leadership positions in Congress to help Africa manage its HIV/AIDS crisis.
The senators are part of a delegation currently visiting Africa for a firsthand account of how the pandemic is affecting the continent.
Alexander said recent visits to clinics and other medical facilities had helped determine how the money from President George W Bush’s US $15 billion global HIV/AIDS initiative could best be distributed.
Bush recently signed into law an HIV/AIDS plan to tackle the pandemic in 14 African countries and the Caribbean.
The Associated Press news agency quoted Alexander as saying: "Its been an eye-opening and, in many cases, eye-popping experience."
This article was produced by IRIN News while it was part of the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Please send queries on copyright or liability to the UN. For more information: https://shop.un.org/rights-permissions