Former U.S. President Bill Clinton on Saturday launched a program that is to nearly double the number of children receiving treatment for HIV infection in Kenya by the end of the year. Some 100,000 children are infected with HIV, but only 1,200 receive treatment. The Clinton Foundation's Pediatric HIV/AIDS Initiative will provide treatment to an extra 1,000 children in this East African nation, AP reported. Clinton flew to Rwanda later Saturday and donated a year's supply of anti-retroviral treatment for 2,500 children infected with HIV, the virus that causes AIDS. The initiative is part of the Clinton Foundation's goal to have 10,000 children on anti-retroviral treatment in at least 10 countries by the end of 2005. Clinton has raised funds from private donors led by the Children Investment Fund Foundation, a London-based charity that funds projects to improve the lives of children living in poor countries. The U.S.-based investment fund Lone Pine Capital has also made a substantial contribution. Children account for one-sixth of annual HIV/AIDS deaths worldwide, but represent far less than five percent of current treatment coverage, according to the U.N.'s World Health Organization.
