Obama administration allots $300 million to reduce HIV infection in sub-Sarahan Africa

The Obama administration announced Saturday a $300 million program to help reduce HIV infections in girls and young women who live in sub-Saharan Africa, The Associated Press reports.

Officials are shooting for a 25 percent reduction among girls and women aged 15 to 24 by the end of 2016, and a 40 percent reduction a year later.

"No greater action is needed right now than empowering adolescent girls and young women to defeat HIV/AIDS," National Security Adviser Susan Rice said.

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The announcement is the newest phase of the U.S. President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief, which President George W. Bush started.

Each day, more than 1,000 girls and young women are infected with HIV, and in 2014, half of them lived in the 10 countries the administration plans to target: Kenya, Lesotho, Malawi, Mozambique, South Africa, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.