First Lady receives courtesy call from PANCAP representatives

Georgetown, Guyana – (March 19, 2018) First Lady, Mrs. Sandra Granger, on Friday, received a courtesy call from the Caribbean Partnership Against HIV/AIDS Fund’s (PANCAP) Portfolio Manager, Ms. Lilian Pedrosa and Senior Advisor on the Private Sector Engagement, Mr. Steven Parkinson, at her State House office.  The purpose of the meeting was to discuss the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) agreement and identify areas of collaboration. In addition, the team used the opportunity to congratulate the First Lady for her work in the fight against the spread of HIV.

First Lady, Mrs. Sandra Granger (center) with Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria (GFATM) Fund Portfolio Manager, Ms. Lilian Pedrosa (right), Ministry of Health’s Finance Director, Ms. Sonia Roberts (far right) GFATM Sustainability Specialist, Ms. Carmen Gonzalez (left) and Senior Adviser on the Private Sector Engagement Mr. Steven Parkinson (far left) today at State House.

Ms. Pedrosa, in an invited comment, indicated that the team was very excited to collaborate further with the First Lady’s Office after witnessing the impact of her initiatives on the lives of young women. “We came here today to meet the First Lady and to congratulate her on the fight against HIV and championing so many important initiatives in women’s rights. We will continue our collaboration. We are very excited that she is part of the First Ladies’ group for the PANCAP. We’ll be working together in health and bringing more attention to the fight against HIV,” she said

Meanwhile, Mr. Parkinson, explained that the team will be exploring avenues to engage the private sector to gain support for the Global Fund. “The reason I am here today to meet the Honourable First Lady is to explore avenues for her to support in engaging the Private Sector in Guyana in accelerating the transformation of the country, particularly as it relates to the fight against HIV, tuberculosis and malaria,” he said.

Also present at the meeting was PANCAP’s Sustainability Specialist, Ms. Carmen Gonzalez and the Ministry of Health’s Finance Director, Ms. Sonia Roberts.

The GFATM agreement, which is being implemented by the Ministry of Health, through their collaboration with PANCAP, mandates the focus on equitable access to health services by key affected populations inclusive of sexual minorities, to respond directly to the current, documented epidemiological situation, and to use country‐oriented and results‐driven approaches.