Govt To End HIV/AIDS By 2030

Katsina State Government has assured readiness to end the spread of HIV and AIDS across the state in the next six years, precisely by the end of 2030.

Director of Planning, Research and Statistics at the State Agency for the Control of Aids, Abdullahi Abubakar, disclosed this on Monday at the International Women’s Day 2024 commemorated by the state branch of the Association of Women Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria.

According to Abubakar, in the last quarter of 2023, precisely November, over 20,000 people on treatment were captured to have been living with HIV, however, with the adoption of a new strategy requiring every client to have his data, finger and thumbprint among other identities captured, would assist with intense treatment of the disease.

He said, the current number of HIV patients on treatment in the state now stands at 16, 706.

He, therefore, called on all husbands, to allow their wives access to antenatal care services in hospitals whenever they are pregnant, urging residents to know their HIV status for easy disaggregation of those living with the virus, and vice versa.

On her part, State Coordinator, the Association of Women Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, Hajiya Asiya Shehu, noted that the association joined the global community in commemorating the International Women’s Day 2024 to celebrate the achievements of women and advocate for gender equality.

In the meantime, the Chairman of People Living with HIV in Katsina State, Shehu Suleiman, called on members, to frequently access medication despite stigma and discrimination from the community members, urging the community and government to take eradicating HIV seriously.