| " HARARE (Reuters) - The United States government said on Thursday it would provide $18 million worth of life-saving anti-retroviral (ARV) drugs to help Zimbabwe add 40,000 people to its HIV/AIDS treatment program." " The southern African country is among the worst hit by the epidemic, which kills more than 3,000 people every week and accounts for 70 percent of hospital admissions." " In a joint announcement, U.S. ambassador Christopher Dell and Zimbabwe's Minister of Health David Parirenyatwa said ARVs worth $15 million would be made available over three years, while $3 million would be used to acquire rapid HIV testing kits over the same period." " Parirenyatwa said the additional drugs would increase the total number of people on the government's ARV scheme from the current 81,000. The government says at least 340,000 people need ARVs." " "This initial program is for three years and we hope that during that time, other donors and the Global Fund will be in a position to provide additional support," Dell said." "
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