VZCZCXRO9506
RR RUEHDU RUEHJO
DE RUEHMR #0225 1301050
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R 101050Z MAY 06
FM AMEMBASSY MASERU
TO RUEHC/SECSTATE WASHDC 2037
INFO RUEHGO/AMEMBASSY RANGOON 0015
RUCNSAD/SADC COLLECTIVE
RUEHMR/AMEMBASSY MASERU 2309

UNCLAS MASERU 000225 
 
SIPDIS 
 
SIPDIS 
 
RANGOON FOR W. PATRICK MURPHY 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: KOCI KHIV OEXC OVIP PREL SOCI PGOV SCUL PHUM LT
SUBJECT: ATLANTA'S MAYOR AND LESOTHO'S YOUNGEST AIDS VICTIMS 
 
 
¶1. SUMMARY 
----------------- 
Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin visited Lesotho from 10 April - 
13 April 2006 as a guest of CARE International.  Ambassador June 
Carter Perry met with the Mayor on three separate occasions, an 
introductory meeting with the Ambassador in the Chancery, 
celebrations at a USAID and Center for Disease Control (CDC) 
funded orphans and vulnerable children's (OVC) project site and 
at a high level lunch.  In attendance at the lunch were the 
Lesotho Ministers of Foreign Affairs, Finance, Local Government, 
Gender Youth Sports and Recreation, Natural Resources, Tourism 
Environment and Culture and the Mayor of Maseru.  Mayor Franklin 
identified a number of challenges that Atlanta and Lesotho 
share, including water management, providing education, and 
HIV/AIDS.  In discussions with the Ambassador, she also 
identified some potential assistance that citizens of Atlanta 
may be interested in supporting. END SUMMARY 
 
¶2. Mayor Franklin highlighted Atlanta's importance as the home 
of CARE International and CDC and pointed out that Atlanta has 
one of the highest HIV positive populations in the U.S.  She 
works closely with Morehouse and Emory Universities to develop 
Atlanta's ability to fight this epidemic.  Atlanta's work in 
decentralization of medical services headed by Former Surgeon 
General Dr. David Satcher and presently Director of the National 
Center for Primary Care at the Morehouse School of Medicine may 
prove especially instructive.  The Mayor and Ambassador agreed 
that Atlanta's experience could be used to help address 
Lesotho's own problems through training and outreach.  Also, he 
Mayor is an alumna of Howard University, where the Ambassador 
was Diplomat in Residence (2002) and was open to helping Lesotho 
develop a relationship with this premier institution's hospital 
and medical departments. 
 
¶3. During discussions with the Ministers of Finance and Foreign 
Affairs, the Mayor emphasized her involvement in Atlanta's need 
for better water management to meet the growing population (five 
million).  Like Atlanta, Lesotho is developing its 
infrastructure to manage water.  The Minister and Mayor agreed 
that information sharing on this vital issue would help both 
governments. 
 
¶4. The Mayor also shared with the ministers Atlanta's success 
with accelerated condensed education initiatives.  Atlanta is 
training young people to be skilled workers in the fields of 
medicine (pharmacists, chemists, health care providers), 
plumbing, electronics, firefighting, and police officers in 
shortened certificate courses.  Atlanta's program has provided 
young unemployed residents access to jobs and skills.  Many of 
these young people have been able to take their training and 
pursue further education.  The Mayor said Atlanta's initiative 
presents a model, which could be transferred to Lesotho and help 
tackle Lesotho's high unemployment rate and lack of skilled 
workers.  The Mayor said one of the greatest advantages from a 
management point of view from these accelerated condensed 
courses was the ability to serve more people without increasing 
the budget -- in other words, stretching a limited education 
budget to serve more people. 
 
¶5. The Ambassador and Mayor discussed Atlanta civil society's 
potential assistance to Lesotho's OVC.  Civic organizations in 
Atlanta are already supporting orphanages in South Africa.  It 
is hoped this support can be extended to the approximately 
200,000 OVCs in Lesotho.  The Links Incorporated (An 
organization of mostly African American women with approximately 
270 chapters predominantly in the U.S. was founded to address 
concerns arising from the immediate post-World War II era.  The 
corporate entity works to create, as per its name, links of 
assistance and friendship.  There are over five The Links Inc. 
organizations in the Atlanta metro area.) were raised as a 
potential source of assistance.  The Mayor suggested Atlanta's 
International Leadership Institute might also assist. 
 
¶6. Comment: Due to flight routes, a large number of visitors 
from Lesotho to the United States pass through Atlanta.  Volvis 
or Atlanta-hosted excursions for ECA-sponsored visitors and 
others would, at no significant extra cost, provide an 
opportunity to observe first hand Atlanta's initiatives to 
address problems similar to those in Lesotho.  Furthermore, 
networking with Atlanta's government will reinforce USG MPP 
goals in Lesotho of decentralizing government, democratic 
practices, global health and economic development and growth. 
Preliminary discussions with the Mayor's staff suggest Atlanta 
would be interested in pursuing a closer relationship. 
 
PERRY