The United States has entered into five-year bilateral health cooperation agreements with Uganda and Lesotho, aiming to support the America First Global Health Strategy and help build more robust health systems in both countries.
In Kampala, U.S. officials and the Ugandan government signed a health cooperation agreement valued at nearly $2.3 billion. The United States plans to invest up to $1.7 billion of that amount over five years to address HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and other infectious diseases in Uganda while also working to strengthen the country's overall health infrastructure. The Government of Uganda has committed to co-investing over $500 million as part of its National Development Plan IV and Vision 2040. The agreement includes measures to advance digitalization in Uganda's national health sector and support for faith-based healthcare providers as well as medical services for the Ugandan military.
A similar agreement was signed between the United States and Lesotho, establishing a five-year Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) worth $364 million. According to the MOU, the State Department intends—pending Congressional approval—to provide up to $232 million over five years to help Lesotho combat HIV/AIDS and strengthen its health workforce, data management systems, disease surveillance, and outbreak response capabilities. Lesotho's government will invest an additional $132 million towards its domestic HIV/AIDS response efforts. The agreement also paves the way for technological innovations such as improved internet connectivity for clinics and advanced delivery methods for medical supplies.
According to U.S. officials, these new agreements are part of ongoing efforts: "The United States will continue to sign multi-year Bilateral Agreements on Global Health Cooperation with dozens of countries receiving U.S. health assistance in the coming weeks to advance the America First Global Health Strategy."
Both agreements reflect collaborative investments from each partner country aimed at improving public health outcomes through funding, technical support, innovation in healthcare delivery systems, and strengthened local capacity.
