The U.S. Agency for International Development funded a program that supported the passing of laws criminalizing HIV exposure in Africa, according to an organization advocating the rights of people living with HIV in the U.S. and overseas.
Housing Works said USAID funded the Action for West Africa Region HIV-AIDS program in 2004, which supported HIV-specific laws, the Michigan Messenger reports. The program, which received a five-year grant worth $35 million from USAID, included the development of a “model” HIV-specific criminal law that served as a basis for similar laws in at least 27 countries, the organization writes in a blog post.
Read more about U.S. development aid.