Nigeria to begin production of HIV/AIDS anti-retroviral drugs

Nigeria is set to begin production of anti-retroviral drugs to combat HIV/AIDS, following the withdrawal of funds by the United States.

The Director-General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Dr Temitope Ilori, disclosed this on Friday.

She stated that plans are on to begin domestic production of HIV commodities before the end of 2025.

She noted that domestic production of HIV commodities such as test kits and anti-retroviral drugs was part of measures government was taking to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.

The NACA boss added that other measures included enrolling all individuals in the National Health Insurance Scheme, mobilising resources to states, strengthening advocacy efforts and supporting vaccine research and innovation.

”UNAIDS 2023 reports indicate that approximately 140,000 children aged 0-14 are living with HIV, with 22,000 new infections and 15,000 AIDS-related deaths occurring annually.

”Despite progress, PMTCT and paediatric HIV coverage remains below 33%, far from the 95% target.

”To address this, the Global Alliance Action Plan to End AIDS in Children was developed in 2021 with full financial support, yet coverage remains suboptimal,” she said.