NACA decries 140,000 children with HIV, 22,000 new infections

Inaugurates committee to oversee paediatric HIV programme

National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) has said about 140,000 children under the age of 14 years live with HIV in Nigeria as of 2023, with 22,000 new infections and 15,000 AIDS-related deaths in children. 
 
Consequently, the Federal Government inaugurated a Prevention of Mother to Child Transmissions (PMTCT)/Paediatric HIV Scale-Up Acceleration Committee to oversight the PMTCT and paediatric HIV programme implementation, in line with the three-one principle of one coordinating agency, one strategic framework and one Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) system. 
 
At the inauguration of the committee, yesterday, in Abuja, Minister of State for Health, Dr Tunji Alausa, noted that Nigeria contributed 25 per cent of the global burden of HIV transmission between mothers and their children.  
 
He observed that despite testing approximately four million pregnant women in 2023, the country’s PMTCT and paediatric HIV coverage remained low at about 35 per cent, falling significantly short of the 95 per cent target.

According to Alausa, in 2021, Nigeria’s Global Alliance to End AIDS in Children Action Plan was developed to scale up paediatric HIV care and eliminate vertical transmission of HIV between mothers and their children, lamenting that three years later, the country has yet to witness significant progress, as service coverage has remained below 35 per cent year after year.
 
He noted that achieving the government’s health sector renewal initiative might be impossible if our children remain vulnerable to HIV. 
 
The minister stated that through NACA and the National AIDS and STIs Control Programme (NASCP), the government would provide effective governance and work with partners to facilitate efficient, equitable and quality healthcare for children.
 
He pointed out that eliminating MTCT of HIV and ensuring care for all persons living with HIV, especially children, “aligns with the Renewed Hope Agenda of government, adding that the committee, comprising technocrats and bureaucrats, would ensure early testing and optimised comprehensive, high-quality treatment and care for children and adolescents living with HIV and children exposed to HIV.
 
Director-General of NACA, Dr Temitope Ilori, said Nigeria was facing a critical challenge in PMTCT of HIV and ensuring access to care for children living with HIV. 

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