NAN-HG-11
HIV/AIDS
Abuja, May 24, 2017 (NAN) AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF), a Non Governmental Organisation (NGO) has urged the Federal Government to take ownership of its HIV/AIDS response in the country to reduce the dependency on foreign donours.
Ms Oluwakemi Gbadamosi, the Senior Manager, Public Relations and Communication, AHF Africa, made the call in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Wednesday in Abuja.
According to her, the present financing mechanism with donour partners contributing more than 70 per cent of the national funding for HIV/AIDS response is not sustainable.
“We urge the Nigerian government to tow the path of South Africa by taking ownership of its HIV/AIDS response.
“South Africa presently runs its HIV/AIDS intervention with more than 80 per cent, Zimbabwe Government also supports its response by 50 per cent, while Kenya and Rwanda are doing tremendously well.
“The Federal Government should take responsibility of its citizenry and scale up its domestic funding,’’ she said.
She called on the government to seek alternative ways to raise funds through private sectors for the Aids Trust Fund approved and established by the HIV/AIDS council.
Gbadamosi said the Aids Trust Fund was a special fund outside the normal budgetary provision to sustain funding and ownership of HIV/AIDS response programmes.
“Presently, persons living with the virus are made to pay the user fee which comprises payments of some laboratory fees.
“This came about as a result of donour withdrawal and some of them cannot afford it, and such would discourage them from going to the clinics to collect their drugs,’’ Gbadamosi said.
She decried the low budgetary allocation to the health sector, adding that it was lower than other sectors.
“The promise that Nigeria made during the Abuja declaration, alongside other African countries to give at least 15 per cent to health has not been met till now.
“The health sector is very important and needs to be accorded priority by the government because it is important as security and education if not more important,’’ she added.
She said though, some modest achievements had been recorded in the fight against the disease, more still needs to be done by the citizens and the government.
This she said were in terms of awareness, adding that a lot had been achieved and most Nigerians were aware of the diseases.
According to her, there are still lots of misconceptions in some rural communities.
“Is one thing to be aware, but it is another thing to have the accurate information as some people still have a lot of misconception with the mode of transmission.
“However, so much sensitisation needs to be done in rural communities.’’
Gbadamosi said that a recent survey conducted showed that a decline had been recorded in the prevalence rate of the diseases in the country, while a lot of persons living with the virus were yet to be on treatment.
“If we want to eliminate the diseases, we need to put more people on treatment because we have over 800,000 people on treatment out of 3.4 million persons living with the virus.
“Stigma and discrimination is still a challenge in the society, in spite that we have an anti-discrimination law.
“What have we done as a country to see that the law is put to use and tested in the court of law,’’ she said.
She further commended the government on the adoption and implementation of the test and treat policy which means whoever was tested positive could start treatment immediately.
Gbadamosi, however, noted that the shortage of funds, test kits and access to anti-retroviral drugs in some communities could pose a great challenge to the success of the policy. (NAN)
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Edited by Morayo Omolade/Ese E. Ekama