The Civil Society for HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (CiSHAN) has called on President Bola Tinubu to declare a state of emergency on HIV response to mobilize urgent action.
In a statement signed by Dr. Bright Oniovokukor, South-South Zonal Coordinator, and Hamza Aliyu, North Central Zonal Coordinator, CiSHAN emphasized the need for governments at all levels to prioritize domestic funding to ensure the sustainability of HIV prevention and treatment efforts.
Dr. Oniovokukor highlighted several challenges facing Nigeria’s HIV response, including high rates of drug use among youths, funding uncertainties, poverty, and limited awareness, especially among children and adolescents.
“The 2025 national and state budgets allocated less than 0.0001% to the fight against HIV, despite the Abuja Declaration’s recommendation of 15%. This is unacceptable,” Oniovokukor said.
He pointed out that Nigeria’s heavy reliance on donor funding, particularly from the US, has left the HIV response in a precarious state. “For too long, governments at all levels have paid lip service to funding the national response,” he added.
CiSHAN called for a unified approach involving government, civil society, and the private sector to address the epidemic.
Oniovokukor stressed that insufficient sensitization activities have made children and adolescents vulnerable to infection, erasing progress made in the past 15 years.
“The time to act is now. Nigeria cannot afford to lose the progress made in the fight against HIV. With collective action and a renewed focus on domestic resource mobilization, the country can get back on track to achieving its goal of ending AIDS by 2030,” Oniovokukor concluded.
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