Lack of funds hinders HIV/AIDS management in Nigeria – FG

President Goodluck Jonathan who made this known during the celebration of the World AIDS Day in Bwari Local Government Secretariat in Abuja, noted that progress was being threatened by lack of resources.The president who was represented by the Minister of Health, Professor Christian Onyebuchi Chukwu, appealed to state governors and the private sector to mobilize […]

President Goodluck Jonathan who made this known during the celebration of the World AIDS Day in Bwari Local Government Secretariat in Abuja, noted that progress was being threatened by lack of resources.
The president who was represented by the Minister of Health, Professor Christian Onyebuchi Chukwu, appealed to state governors and the private sector to mobilize funds that would be used for the implementation of the Comprehensive Response Plan for HIV and related infectious diseases.
Chukwu, also urged all Nigerians to know their HIV status as a first step towards securing their future.
Director General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) Prof John Idoko also reiterated that “we must innovatively look inwards to seek ways of resourcing funds for the National HIV response which we must attain by 2015. The two-year plan is expected to significantly bridge the gaps in the national response by mobilizing resources to test 80 million Nigerians, treat more than one million HIV positive persons, and provide prevention of  mother to child transmission services  to about 250,000 HIV positive women.”
On the war against HIV, he stressed that: “We are winning the fight against HIV in Nigeria and there is evidence to support what we have achieved. However, we must build on what we have achieved. We must mobilize all Nigerians to key into the national HIV response.”
Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ban Ki-Moon in a message read on his behalf, expressed optimism that the world was accelerating progress in responding to HIV.
He said: “There are significant decreases in new infections and deaths, and we are making good progress in realizing our target of ensuring 15 million people have access to antiretroviral treatment by 2015.  This is crucial to halting and reversing the AIDS epidemic for good.
“But, as revealed in the UNAIDS World AIDS Day Report for 2013, there are still worrying signals that some regions and countries are falling behind.  We are making advances in reaching vulnerable populations through efforts to eliminate stigma and discrimination, but there is still much to do to end this problem.  
“We must recommit to breaking the remaining barriers, including punitive laws and social exclusion, so we can reach all people who lack access to HIV treatment and services.