President Muhammadu Buhari launched a N62 billion HIV/AIDS Trust Fund to assist Nigeria end the public health threat of AIDS and also to ensure more people living with HIV are being treated annually.
Speaking at the launch of the trust fund on Tuesday in Abuja, The President pledged that his administration would continue to address public health emergencies.
President Buhari said, “At the last United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on HIV/AIDS, I made a call for a renewed global action to address the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Africa.
“We have continued to make good our commitment to placing more people living with HIV on treatment annually using national resources. However, strong domestic resource mobilization with an enduring partnership and shared responsibility is required to sustain the response to HIV and other emerging public health emergencies.”
The President said that his administration’s collaboration with the private sector in response to the COVID 19 pandemic had provided an available financing solution to leverage in sustaining the HIV response.
He also commended the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) and the Nigeria Business Coalition Against AIDS for establishing the HIV Trust Fund of Nigeria.
Chief Launcher and Chairman of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote said the purpose of the fund was to mobilize resources towards AIDS eradication in Nigeria, starting with the Prevention of Mother-to-Child transmission of the virus.
He said, “We would like the private sector to work in partnership with the Federal Government on a 50-50 basis which we believe will help us eliminate Mother-to-Child transmission of HIV/AIDS in Nigeria.”
Dangote also appealed to both individuals and corporate organizations to donate towards the Fund.
