Nigeria at the verge of HIV control targets, says the US CDC.

The US Centre for Disease Control, USCDC, Abuja, has expressed optimism that Nigeria will achieve HIV epidemic control with patients’ adherence to antiretroviral treatment leading to elimination by 2030.

This is done by getting the patients and the beneficiaries to lead the campaign because, presently, Nigeria has achieved 87% coverage for adults, although there is still a gap in the paediatrics programme.

The Team Leader, HIV Care and Treatment Branch, USCDC, Dr. Obinna Ogbanufe, made this known at the on-going five-dday PEEP Curriculum Review and Validation Workshop in Lagos.

According to Dr. Ogbanufe, “We know that in Nigeria, stigma still plays a huge role, so we are looking for ways and tools to use so we can reduce stigma and reach the remainder of the clients we are looking for in the communities, which is less than 20%.”. 

“People driving the epidemic currently are young people and the key priority population, which are men having sex with men, female sex workers, injection drug users, and adolescents, she added. “For these groups of people, we are working with their peers to reach them, using virtual spaces and technology to reach the epidemic’s roots.”. He stated

Dr. Ogbanufe explained that the organisation had reached a lot of people with treatment and prevention because treatment is prevention; “the more people you have on treatment, the more people you have virally suppressed.” What that means is that, when you have people who are virally suppressed, you have achieved community viral suppression; therefore, the transmission will be halted within the community, that’s epidemic control. Ogbanufe stressed

He advocated reinforcement of prevention messages to avert new infections. He stressed the need to find the remainder of the people who have not been reached so that they halt transmission amongst them by getting them identified and placing them on treatment, noting that “treatment is the greatest prevention tool available now; we now have to reinforce prevention using other tools like what we are doing here.

Ogbanufe emphasised, and I quote, “Patient literacy has been a big problem; when people know what they are doing, it helps them. You saw the aspect of dignity and prevention, which is empowering patients to be responsible for their health, and empowering patients, they are not going to transmit the infection. “If every patient knows their status to say that they are not going to transmit the infection, that means we are getting to the end of it, HIV Free Generation.”

The Chief Executive Officer of Journalist Against Aids, JAIDS, Ms Laide Akanni, said the idea of the empowerment programme was kicked off by PEPFER Nigeria in 2021 when civil society organisations realised there had been a lull in investment in patient education, as a lot of patients who had started treatment over the years did not have the in-depth counselling that was required.

This is because a lot of patients had issues adhering to treatment guidelines and were not aware of what was free under the programme and what was to be paid for, including situations of sharp practices in hospitals and patients being charged for things that the government or partners have paid for.

“The reason is to bring external stakeholders to do a critical review of the content such that, at the end of this, we come up with current content that is simplified.” Again, look at how to deploy it, maybe online, where they register and take the course on their own. develop into newsletters or materials that can be used at their level? Or can the media have miniseries where, on a regular basis, during health shows, there are discussions about this? Laide asked.

She wants stakeholders to think through the curriculum to ensure that people living with HIV, irrespective of their location, can utilise it and be empowered so that they can have meaningful interactions with their caregivers who understand why they are taking the treatment, so they can engage their caregivers and also provide support to other clients who may be struggling. “An empowered client doesn’t need to see a doctor to guide another client who may be struggling.

In a goodwill message, the Director General of the National Agency for the Control of Aids, NACA, Dr Temitope Ilori, appreciated NEPWHAN for leading the process and always prioritising whatever would benefit people living with HIV in Nigeria.

“Issues around rights violations, gender-based violence, denial of access to services, stigma, and discrimination have been impacting negatively on the national response and the lives of people living with HIV in particular.”. Ilori

According to her, for Nigeria to tackle the issues, the first thing is the education of community members on what their rights are, because it is only when you know your rights that you will be able to know when it are violated. ” Dr Ilori added, “This is what I believe the document will help to achieve when finally deployed “.

The NACA boss promised to continue to partner with institutions on initiatives that will help the national response achieve its goals and contribute to the global target of ending AIDS by 2030.

The DG’s message was delivered by a principal programme officer in the agency, Mr. Emeka Nwafor.

Julie Ekong