The head of PEPFAR acknowledged there have been some “challenging discussions” in recent weeks and said allegations that the U.S. global AIDS initiative offers a platform for abortion in Africa “is absolutely not the case.”
“PEPFAR has never, will not ever, use that platform in supporting abortion,” said U.S. Global AIDS Coordinator John Nkengasong at an event in Washington, D.C. on Wednesday.
Nkengasong’s remarks come a day after Republican Rep. Chris Smith, who had been a PEPFAR supporter in the past, wrote a letter to colleagues alleging that NGOs were using funding to support abortion-related programs. Several of those NGOs told Devex the accusations were untrue. Other conservative groups have made similar claims.
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About the author
Adva Saldinger@AdvaSal
Adva Saldinger is a Senior Reporter at Devex where she covers development finance, as well as U.S. foreign aid policy. Adva explores the role the private sector and private capital play in development and authors the weekly Devex Invested newsletter bringing the latest news on the role of business and finance in addressing global challenges. A journalist with more than 10 years of experience, she has worked at several newspapers in the U.S. and lived in both Ghana and South Africa.
