U.S. and Caribbean Ministerial Meeting on HIV/AIDS in Georgetown, Guyana

April 20, 2002 - Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson traveled to Georgetown, Guyana, for a day-long meeting with Caribbean ministers of health, nongovernmental organizations, donor agencies, and senior U.S. health officials from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Health Resources and Services Administration (HRSA), National Institutes of Health (NIH), and the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) to provide an overview of current, global HIV/AIDS activities, and to outline plans for future health partnerships.

At the opening session of the U.S. and Caribbean Ministerial Meeting on HIV/AIDS in Georgetown, Guyana, the U.S. Ambassador to Guyana, Ronald Godard addressed Secretary Thompson, the Caribbean health ministers, and other invited guests. During his remarks he read a letter from Secretary of State Colin Powell. Secretary Powell stated, "Combating this terrible disease [HIV/AIDS] requires leadership and partnership across national borders…. President Bush, Secretary of Health Tommy Thompson, and I are making the stemming of HIV/AIDS a top priority for the American people and the American government." He commended the Secretary and the health ministers for sitting down together to look at ways to strengthen the partnership in this war on HIV.

The Secretary was joined by Ambassador Ronald Godard and USAID Mission Director, Dr. Carol Becker, as he thanked Jimmy Bhojedat, the Executive Director, and the young volunteers of Lifeline for their hard work in providing counseling and outreach to adolescents and youth.

Last revised: September 26, 2007