The National AIDS Commission (NAC) has launched an upgraded data management system as part of its comprehensive strategy to combat AIDS in Lesotho by 2030.

In an interview with Mr. Hlompho Motsoasele, the NAC's monitoring and evaluation officer, he explained that the primary objective of this initiative is to enhance the capacity of HIV implementing partners to effectively report their activities within the Lesotho Monitoring System for HIV/AIDS (LOMSHA).

“This system will be instrumental in documenting all community interventions related to HIV/AIDS,” he said.

Mr. Motsoasele emphasized the necessity of this system, stating, "It has become apparent that there has been a historical gap in reporting, as data has traditionally remained at the program or partner level. To make informed decisions at the national level and to gauge progress at the community level, it is imperative that all partner data is integrated into a centralized national database."

He clarified that while this system is not entirely new, it has undergone updates to facilitate the input of data from all partners.

“To ensure that the system's successful adoption, training sessions are being conducted in all districts, with an expectation that all districts will begin reporting using this new system,” he said.

The motivation behind this system is rooted in the need for transparency regarding the impact of partner interventions in preventing and treating HIV. By enabling data consolidation, it will now be possible to make more informed decisions at the national level concerning HIV/AIDS.

Furthermore, Mr. Motsoasele highlighted that Lesotho possesses abundant health-related data, but the challenge has been the consolidation of this data. LOMSHA will address this issue by improving data management and clinical oversight.

The Lesotho Population-based HIV Impact Assessment (LePHIA) survey of 2020 revealed that Lesotho has achieved the first of the UNAIDS 90-90-90 targets and has surpassed the second and third 90 targets. These remarkable findings position the country favorably as it strives to meet the revised and more ambitious UNAIDS targets of 95-95-95.