Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, on Thursday, disclosed that the AIDS-related deaths in Nigeria have declined from 264,463 in 2015 to about 51,000 in 2022.
The SGF said this at an event in Abuja in commemoration of the World AIDS Day, themed: ‘Equalize to End AIDS: Equal access to Treatment and Prevention services.’
The World Aid Day is observed on December 1 of every year to raise awareness and also commemorate those who passed on and celebrate those who survived and are free from the diseases.
“Since this administration commenced in 2015, I am happy to note that our ongoing efforts to improve access to HIV services have led to a significant reduction in new HIV infections from over 103,000 in 2019 to 92,323 in 2021. In a similar vein, AIDS-related deaths significantly declined from an estimated 264,463 persons at the beginning of this administration to about 51,000 as of October this year.
“Treatment access experienced tremendous improvement since this administration came on board and we can gladly proclaim that access to Anti-Retro Viral Drugs and treatment for HIV has increased more than two-fold in the past five years with about 1.8 million persons now on treatment compared to about 800,000 persons on treatment in 2017.
“The achievements above are heartwarming but HIV still remains an unfinished business because of barriers that pose a threat to ending AIDS by 2030 if not tackled headlong” The SGF said.
