Nigeria?s renewed commitment to ending the scourge of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) may have little to offer, if not backed with concrete actions and immediate relief. Certainly the campaign against the disease has not impacted as desired, going by emerging facts at the last commemoration of World AIDS Day 2024. Although Nigeria?s renewed commitment is to end AIDS by 2030, it is rather discouraging that six years to UNAIDS goal 2030, Nigeria has continued to record a high number of new HIV infections among children.

According to the Director General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Dr Temitope Ilori, Nigeria continues to face a significant challenge in preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV. Reeling out statistics, she said that Nigeria recorded 22,000 new infections; stating that despite Nigeria?s progress, ?our Prevention of Mother-To-Child Transmission (PMTCT) of HIV and paediatric HIV coverage remain below 33%, well below the 95% target.?

Again, quoting the UNAIDS 2023 Report, the NACA Director General said approximately 160,000 children in Nigeria aged 0-14 are living with HIV with 15,000 AIDS-related deaths occurring each year. This suggests that prevention of mother to child transmission (PMTCT) of HIV services is also still below targets. The transmission of HIV from an HIV-positive mother to her child during pregnancy, labour, delivery or breastfeeding is called mother-to-child transmission (MTCT). When children are born with HIV, they carry it to the next generation and the epidemic continues.

As Nigeria joins the world to mark this year?s World AIDS Day, people living with HIV and experts have called for concerted and increased efforts towards bridging gaps in preventing mother-to-child transmission of HIV. This year?s commemoration themed, ?Take the Rights Path: Sustain HIV Response, Stop HIV among Children to End AIDS in Nigeria by 2030?, underscores the critical need for comprehensive strategies to combat this epidemic and protect vulnerable populations, hence the urgent calls for action from health officials and advocates alike.

In the words of Dr. Ilori: ?The power to end AIDS lies in our hands. By breaking barriers and standing together, we can achieve the goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030?. This suggests that stopping HIV transmission among children in Nigeria is crucial to achieving the goal of ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

World AIDS Day, observed annually on December 1st, serves as a poignant reminder of the ongoing battle against HIV/AIDS, particularly in Nigeria, where alarming statistics have emerged. Specifically, the surge in new infections among children calls for immediate action and sustained efforts across all sectors of society.

Given that NACA has reiterated its commitment to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030; and emphasized that no child would be left, it is important to expand access to antenatal care and remove the barriers that hinder women and children from receiving timely healthcare services.

Achieving this requires collaborative efforts involving state governments, private sectors, and community leaders to enhance interventions aimed at preventing HIV transmission among children. This collective action is crucial not only for improving healthcare access but also for fostering an environment free from stigma and discrimination; because the stigma and discrimination surrounding HIV remains a formidable barrier that prevents individuals from seeking testing and treatment.

Therefore, to effectively combat the rising rates of HIV infections among children, sensitisation efforts should focus on the social determinants of health that contribute to the high number of new HIV infections among children. Hence, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, NACA, not-for-profit organisations and the private sector should collaborate and implement comprehensive education programmes to raise awareness about HIV prevention methods among youth and vulnerable populations.

Again, collective action should be targeted at enhancing community engagement and mobilisation of local leaders and influencers to advocate for health rights and encourage testing. In particular, they should also mobilise community support and encourage the use of dialogue as a tool for raising awareness about HIV prevention; having conversations to address the factors fuelling mother-to-child transmission of HIV in Nigeria such as the lack of awareness about HIV, PMTCT service availability, stigma and discrimination, other cultural and social barriers and accessibility and affordability of healthcare services.

For increased HIV testing and treatment for pregnant women, it is important to step up action. In particular, the issue of pregnant women visit to traditional birth attendants (TBAs) and some other unconventional facilitieswhich do not provide comprehensive healthcare services should be discouraged during community engagments. Instead, Mothers should be sensitised to go to public health facilities where there are PMTCT services.

On the supply side, the NACA should embark on aggressive sensitisation to put on the front burner public facilities where women of child bearing age can access ante-natal care; and HIV testing and treatment at no cost to tackle the issues of people resorting to the use of TBAs and visiting unconventional places where they are charged little money for services due to poverty, despite the fact that many of these places do not provide HIV tests or prevention services.

Also, it is important to adopt a rights-based approach, which is essential in ensuring equitable healthcare access for all Nigerians. Nigeria should address the poor attitude of healthcare providers through training, expand access to antiretroviral treatment by increasing the availability of treatment options for pregnant women to reduce mother-to-child transmission by ensuring adequate healthcare infrastructure, establishing more antiretroviral therapy (ART) centres or comprehensive primary healthcare centres, addressing transportation and logistical challenges, language barriers, fear of taking HIV test or receiving HIV-positive results as well as fear of partner violence in case of HIV status disclosure.

All said, the stark reality is that, without immediate and sustained intervention, the future of many Nigerian children remains precarious. Hence, it is imperative to prioritise health equity and dismantle barriers to care, so that Nigeria can forge a path toward a future where no child is left behind in the campaign against HIV/AIDS. (The Guardian Editorial)

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