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BHP-KITSO AIDS Training Program: Program Description In the face of the HIV threat—identified by President Festus Mogae as a national crisis—the Government of Botswana announced in 2001 that it would provide antiretroviral (ARV) therapy free of charge to qualifying patients. This initiative, without precedent in Africa, poses significant challenges to Botswana’s already overburdened national healthcare system in terms of personnel, infrastructure, and training. Created in 2000, the KITSO AIDS Training Program is the Botswana Ministry of Health’s national training program for HIV and AIDS. KITSO was initially conceived, developed, and implemented as a collaboration of the Ministry of Health and the Botswana–Harvard School of Public Health AIDS Initiative Partnership for HIV Research and Education (BHP). In 2004, the KITSO AIDS Training Program was expanded to include more partner organizations and provide more training opportunities for health professionals in Botswana. Within this framework BHP’s KITSO efforts (BHP-KITSO) provide quality, multi-disciplinary, sustainable, and standardized training in HIV and AIDS care and treatment crafted specifically for Botswana’s health professionals. BHP-KITSO’s training efforts are made possible through the support of the African Comprehensive HIV/AIDS Partnerships (ACHAP), a collaboration between the Government of Botswana, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation and The Merck Compnay Foundation/Merck & Co., Inc. |