The National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) says the Nigerian HIV/AIDS Trust Fund will be functional by March 2019.
The Director-General of NACA, Dr Sani Aliyu, announced this at the 2018 Civil Society Organisations Accountability Forum.
The forum was themed: “Domestic Resource Mobilisation: Increasing Public and Private Sector Investment”, on Tuesday in Abuja.
Aliyu said that the virus could be controlled but the challenge was funding, thus the need for the establishment of the fund.
“The HIV Trust Fund of Nigeria has been adopted by private sector, it is an initiative that would be private sector driven and it would be launched in March 2019.
“Its main function would be to bring funding into HIV treatment, with this trust fund, emphasis would be shifted from just treatment to prevention.
“President Muhammadu Buhari has also directed that the full amount for the HIV/AIDS treatment should be released to fast track results,” he said.
Aliyu said that there was an ongoing Nigeria HIV and AIDS Indicator and Impact Survey (NAIIS) to establish the status of people living with the scourge.
He said that the survey would help the government know the number of persons affected with the diseases in the country and to provide adequate treatment and care for the patients.
He said that the outcome of the survey would define Nigeria’s new HIV and AIDS status in terms of prevalence and in terms of incidence.
He added that the data emerging from the survey would change the outlook of HIV in Nigeria and shift the narrative from treatment to prevention.
He commended the CSOs for the initiative, adding that the conference was the first of its kind.
Declaring the conference open, Mrs Pauline Tallen, NACA Board Chairperson, commended the contribution of CSOs in the fight against HIV in Nigeria.
Tallen reiterated government commitment to supporting CSOs in Nigeria, adding: “I assure you that government is fully appreciative of what you are doing.’’
She noted that with the support from CSOs, NACA was reaching those that haven’t been reached.
She said that NACA’s desire was to put in more effort to ensure that HIV mothers give birth to safe children, adding that so far the statistic is encouraging.
