December 03, (THEWILL) – The World AIDS Day 2023 was marked across the globe on Friday, December 1, with a charge on communities to lead the campaign against HIV/AIDS. Headlining the commemoration of the day with different enlightenment activities was the World Health Organisation (WHO) with communities and partners who focused their actions on the theme for this year, “Let communities lead.”
The message to communities living with and affected by HIV, networks of people from key populations and youth leaders across the world has always been centred on the need for the continuation of efforts to ensure progress in the HIV response. The message continued this year as stakeholders were encouraged to ensure that everyone, everywhere has equal access to HIV prevention, testing, treatment and care.
The World AIDS Day was also marked in Nigeria with activities across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory with enlightenment campaigns, seminars and road shows targeted at encouraging care and concern, as well as equal access to treatment for those infected with HIV/AIDS. WHO estimates that globally, 39.0 million people were living with HIV at the end of 2022 while an estimated 0.7 per cent of adults aged 15–49 years worldwide are living with HIV.
While the burden of the epidemic continues to vary considerably between countries and regions, the 2019 Nigeria National HIV/AIDS Indicator and Impact Survey puts the number of people living with HIV and AIDS (PLWHA) in the country as at 2018 at 1.9 million though HIV and AIDS are far more prevalent among people in prisons and high-risk drug users, especially with people who inject drugs (PWIDs).
A similar survey by Statisca also indicated that in 2021, 1.9 million people in Nigeria were living with HIV with women being the most affected group, with 1.1m individuals just as the number of children up to age 14 who were HIV positive was put at 170,000.
Nigeria’s First Lady, Mrs Oluremi Tinubu, Friday, also joined in lending her voice to the fight against HIV/AIDS as she maintained that the fight against HIV/AIDS can only be won with the active involvement of leaders of various communities. Mrs Tinubu spoke in Victoria Falls, Zimbabwe, at an event to commemorate the 2023 World AIDS Day organised by the First Lady of Zimbabwe, Dr Auxillia Mnangagwa, ahead of the 22nd edition of the International Conference on AIDS and STI in Africa (ICASA).
Decrying the recent statistics released by the UNAIDS, which revealed that in 2022 there were about 1.5million new infections on the African continent, at the event which had participants from the United Nations and other sister agencies, Mrs Tinubu stressed the need to scale up advocacy and education about the pandemic.
“For decades, the global response to HIV/AIDS has been driven by governments, international organisations and healthcare professionals. While their efforts have been commendable, it is time to recognise the pivotal role that communities play in shaping the response to this epidemic.
“Communities should be at the forefront of the fight against HIV/AIDS, and their leadership is crucial in achieving our goals of prevention, treatment and support,” Mrs Tinubu was quoted as saying in a statement issued by the Senior Special Adviser to the First Lady, Mrs Busola Kukoyi, on Friday in Zimbabwe.
While we commend the First Lady for her efforts to complement that of other advocates on this important occasion, we are still saddened that despite the significant progress made over the past decades, the global HIV/AIDS response is still facing serious threats. The threats include insufficient funding, dangerously high rates of 1.3 million new HIV transmissions annually, an estimated 630,000 deaths each year and responses not being prioritised highly enough, particularly in lower-income countries.
We are therefore glad that other Non-Governmental Organisations, such as AHF Nigeria and others are still sounding the message loud and clear that the fight is not yet over. With AHF Nigeria actively and happily playing a supporting role to support the effort of the Nigerian Government through NACA and the Federal Ministry of Health, we have no doubt that the fight to end AIDS by 2030 is achievable.
We also commend the international community for supporting the efforts of the Nigerian Government, especially the United States Government, which has invested a whopping $7.8 billion in Nigeria through the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR). The investment, which translates into over 1.9 million Nigerians accessing antiretroviral treatment (ART), according to the U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Beth Leonard, is to ensure that Nigerians living with HIV/AIDS have comprehensive access to quality HIV prevention, care, and treatment services.
