On Tuesday, February 11, Ambassador Rebecca Gonzales, Her Majesty Queen ‘Masenate Mohato Seeiso and the Deputy Minister of Health Hon. ‘Manthabiseng Phohleli visited the Letlapeng village in Morija in a bid to help amplify the ongoing Lesotho Population-based HIV Impact Assessment (LePHIA) 2020 survey as it kicks off data collection in the Maseru district.
This outreach entailed visiting households that had been sampled for the survey where they delivered messages of encouragement to the survey mobilization and data collection teams while also expressing appreciation to Basotho who are welcoming the survey teams in their communities and participating in the survey. Delivering her remarks after the tour with the survey team, Ambassador Gonzales thanked Her Majesty the Queen for stepping up to motivate Basotho as the LePHIA 2020 champion during this important last mile to achieve HIV/AIDS epidemic control. She went on to encourage Basotho to accommodate those entrusted with the responsibility to conduct the survey in their homes and further urged them to be honest and be champions in the race to End AIDS in Lesotho.
“This LePHIA survey will go a long way in helping us better understand the burden of HIV/AIDS across Lesotho – Where we are succeeding and the challenges that need urgent attention in our collective efforts to change the landscape of the epidemic in the Mountain Kingdom. I am here to underscore the U.S. government commitment to this important drive,” remarked Ambassador Gonzales
On her part, the Deputy Minister of Health Hon. ‘Manthabiseng Phohleli praised Queen ‘Masenate for her Leadership and commitment to the LePHIA survey. She also lauded Ambassador Gonzales for her unwavering support to the country’s HIV/AIDS response initiatives.
The LePHIA 2020 survey is led by the Government of Lesotho through the Ministry of Health (MOH), conducted with funding from the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) and technical assistance through Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC). The survey is being implemented by ICAP at Columbia University in collaboration with local partners, including the Lesotho Bureau of Statistics (BOS).