Sudden seizure of funds to fight HIV/AIDS, following the US recent policy on foreign aid will erode previously recorded achievements and put young Nigerians at risk, an expert has said.
Managing Director of Reach Care Foundation, an HIV/AIDS care-giver outfit, Dr Nandul Durfa, who spoke to the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, yesterday in Abuja, said the federal government must “fully fund” the services to avoid a relapse to the past gory days of the scourge.
Durfa was reacting to a letter from the Institute of Human Virology informing his outfit of the termination of the agreement to fund the services.
In the letter signed by its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Patrick Dakum, the institute said “due to prevailing funding constraints,” the organisation is “compelled to terminate all contracts currently in force” with all respective organisations.
It said the termination would take effect immediately.
Many non-governmental organisations and other corporate outfits engaged in HIV/AIDS activities have shut down, following a new U.S policy halting foreign aid.
The virology institute had been the beneficiary of U.S foreign aid routed through the United States Agency for International Development, USAID, its foreign aid agency.
There had been a severe threat to global health since the U.S freezed overseas aid with the dismantling of USAID, which distributes tens of billions of dollars worth of overseas aid every year.
The US also announced cuts to the agency’s workforce and the immediate suspension of almost all of its aid projects and programmes.
With the collapse of its funding base, the virology institute has stopped funding all HIV/AIDS services, a situation that has thrown the care-givers into confusion.
Durfa, while expressing regret that USAID had been dismantled, recalled that the HIV/AIDS scourge was a major concern about 20 years ago.
“The scourge was deadly and claimed many lives.
“As the then chief medical director of the University of Abuja Teaching Hospital, I recall that we had more than 7,000 victims at one point.
“The US, through USAID and its programmes, helped us a lot. Nigeria was able to reduce the scourge to almost zero and we were mopping everything up.
“But, with the decision to stop the funding, the outcome is obvious – Nigeria will relapse to a worse epidemic later if no urgent measure is taken by the federal government.
“Government must step into this gap to avoid a resurgence of the disease.”
Durfa said the young population shall be the most vulnerable group to be hit by such “deadly resurgence.”
“Young boys, those less than 20 years, never experienced the HIV/AIDS scourge, let alone take measures to minimise the epidemic.
“If you stop the funding without killing the virus, the existing virus will develop resistance.
“Even if the funds come later, a lot of grounds would have been lost.”
Durfa said the policy reversing the funding of the services would reverse the achievements recorded from 2005 till date.
He said government must provide enough funds to procure the Anti-Retroviral Drugs, pointing out that any delay would be “very dangerous”.
“Nobody is talking about HIV/AIDS now because it has been subdued, but if there is a sudden halt in the funding, the resurgence will wash away the achievements. We should not allow that.”
Durfa, who praised former U.S President, George Bush for the massive support he gave to the fight against HIV/AIDS, urged young Nigerians to step up the campaign for effective funding of the disease.
He also expressed fear that the sudden halt in the provision of services to people living with the scourge could have “tremendous consequences”.
“As a foundation, we have more than 500 people we are catering for; these people shall come and we have to tell them to go back as we are helpless.
“There are also most-at-risk populations that we offer services to. We go to the communities, test them and start immediate treatment for those positive.
“We do this quickly so that they do not infect others.
“Those that are negative, we offer counselling, while negative partners of positive partners are offered medical support to avoid being infected.
“We also offer legal services to victims suffering any form of abuse at work or from their partners, while also supporting victims with genital warts, Tuberculosis and other opportunistic diseases.
“We also create awareness on prevention and treatments, and encourage people to go and be tested.”
Durfa regretted that such crucial services would come to a sudden halt, saying it could have “heavy ripple effects.
“We may have to run because the scourge will build up. The victims could get violent out of frustration.
“There is also fear of suicide. Victims thrown into hopelessness will consider ending their lives.
“There is also the mother-to-child transmission that we have stopped with the right drugs. That drug will no longer be available and the consequences will be dire.
“The consequences will be much. There has to be massive funding. We need a permanent alternative funding otherwise we are sitting on a time bomb,” he said.(NAN)
