Federal government has restated its commitment to achieve the global target of ending HIV/AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, as Nigeria joined the international community to mark the 2025 World AIDS Day.
Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr Iziaq Salako, gave the assurance at the State House, Abuja, yesterday, during the national commemoration, with the theme “Overcoming Disruptions; Sustaining Nigeria’s HIV Response”.
The event was organised in collaboration with the First Lady’s Renewed Hope Initiative, RHI.
Salako noted that government had introduced several programmes and invested more than N300 billion to strengthen HIV/AIDS response and supported health agencies nationwide.
He added that Nigeria had increased domestic funding for HIV interventions to reduce dependency on foreign aid, with expanded local production of antiretroviral drugs and test kits, improving national self-sufficiency and long-term sustainability.
Salako said HIV testing, counselling and treatment coverage continue to expand, with about 1.6 million Nigerians currently on antiretroviral therapy out of an estimated 1.9 million people living with the virus nationwide.
The News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, reports that the federal government in 2024 inaugurated the Free to Shine Campaign, championed by the first lady, to eliminate HIV, syphilis and tuberculosis, particularly preventing mother-to-child transmission.
In spite of the absence of a cure or vaccine, Nigeria aims to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030, transitioning HIV into a manageable, endemic condition through sustained treatment and prevention efforts.
In her remarks, Senator Oluremi Tinubu said the country had recorded notable progress in HIV prevention, treatment and care.
She urged continued commitment to ensure that all Nigerians in need acces lifesaving services.
The first lady stressed that ending AIDS requires compassion, innovation and continuous advocacy.
She emphasised the need to tackle persistent stigma and discrimination, saying every Nigerian deserves dignity and non-judgmental access to healthcare.
Mrs Tinubu noted that national efforts over the past year had focused on eliminating vertical transmission, expanding paediatric HIV treatment and advancing local sustainability of the HIV response across all states.
She lauded the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria; National AIDS and Sexually Transmitted Diseases Control Programme, NASCP; and the National Agency for the Control of AIDS, NACA, for their continued support.
She noted that the Federal Ministry of Health had also played a crucial role in advancing national progress, adding that the combined efforts of those institutions had significantly strengthened the fight against HIV/AIDS nationwide.
Mrs Tinubu added that in partnership with the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development, OAFLAD, the Free to Shine Campaign had expanded its reach across the six geopolitical zones of the country.
She said the initiative is promoting the elimination of HIV, hepatitis and syphilis among mothers and children, strengthening early testing, treatment access and preventive healthcare services nationwide.
Tinubu warned that Nigeria’s response remains heavily donor-funded in spite of shifting global financing trends.
She called for increased local investments to prevent disruptions to critical HIV services.
She disclosed that the federal government had approved the disbursement of $200 million to support HIV, tuberculosis and malaria programmes, while NACA is engaging state governments to ensure long-term ownership of the national response.
Director-General of NACA, Dr Temitope Ilori, said stigma is gradually decreasing and Nigeria is on track to end AIDS as a public health threat, in spite of recent global and economic disruptions.
Ilori noted that challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic, economic fluctuations and declining donor support, had strengthened Nigeria’s resolve to build a more self-reliant, sustainable and homegrown HIV response.
She stated that adult HIV prevalence had dropped to 1.4 per cent, with an estimated 1.9 million Nigerians living with the virus, reflecting progress made through improved access to treatment and testing.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs Didi Esther Walson-Jack, represented by the Permanent Secretary, Daju Kachollom, described the efforts to sustain Nigeria’s HIV response amid disruptions as timely and essential.
She said Nigeria had weathered pandemics, economic shocks and pressure on the health system, yet remained resolute in its commitment to end HIV/AIDS as a public health threat through strengthened sector reforms.
Walson-Jack added that HIV services continue to be integrated into broader health-sector reforms, including the Health Sector Renewal Initiative and revitalisation of primary healthcare, to ensure more resilient service delivery nationwide. NAN
