The U.S. government on Thursday “formally announced the Nursing Education Partnership Initiative (NEPI) in Lilongwe, Malawi,” according to a State Department press release. The PEPFAR initiative aims to “strengthen the quality and capacity of nursing and midwifery education institutions, increase the number of highly skilled nurses and midwives, and support innovative nursing retention strategies in African countries,” the press release notes, adding, “The launch highlighted NEPI agreements [PEPFAR] has made with Malawi, Zambia, Lesotho, Ethiopia, and the Democratic Republic of Congo” (11/17).