This was the period during which former President Festus Mogae’s government was engaged in a battle with the HIV/AIDS scourge that threatened to wipe out the human race if something was not done as a matter of urgency. Lest we forget too quickly, this was a time when Botswana had the terrible distinction of having the highest infection rate of the world’s worst disease ever. But Mogae was unfazed, travelling the world over to raise the clarion call for help. Partly owing to his clarity of purpose and statesmanship and partly due to the essential magnanimity of humanity, the international community responded with generosity, extending a helping hand to a nation teetering on a precipice. Indeed, his work had salutary effect on the rest of the African continent as the world cast its attention wider.
NACA also revealed that during the same period (2001-2011), our country made great strides in reducing mother-to-child transmission of the murderous virus, which was part of the United Nations Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) that were set for 2015. But we must keep vigil, lest complacency sets after we hear these statistics. Indeed, the precautionary measures that have brought us to this sanguine point must be improved upon in order to keep the new infections at bay while we pursue a cure. The government continues to spend billions of pula in procurement of Anti-Retroviral Drugs (ARVs) to keep us alive while research in finding a cure is apace. In the meantime, our personal conduct – one and all – is the elixir of life.
