Adebobola Bashorun, the National Coordinator of the National HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, and STI Control Programme at the Ministry of Health, announced on Tuesday that HIV and AIDS have reached an endemic stage in Nigeria.
He attributed this to effective containment of the disease’s spread and the reduction of stigmatization against those testing positive.
Additionally, the availability of drugs for HIV/AIDS treatment has contributed to a decline in the prevalence rate.
Bashorun discussed these developments during a press briefing in Abuja ahead of the three-day National Training of Trainers on WHO-approved Standard Q HIV 1& 2 Rapid Test Kit in Nigeria.
He said, “We have three classifications of a disease outcome or disease events. We have what we call endemic, like Malaria, it is living with us. We have an epidemic which means it has gone beyond the expected rate for that period. Then pandemic which is global.
“When HIV started, it was an epidemic in a few places. They just started seeing cases that they’ve never seen, later it became a pandemic. It was everywhere in the world. At this stage that we are, it is endemic. This is because we’ve been able to control the spread, we’ve been able to control the stigma, how people see it as something dangerous because now we have treatments for cure. Treatment means you have a treatment that can maintain it. ”
He emphasized the importance of regular HIV testing and highlighted available treatments for managing the disease.
“There is treatment now. So, people should come out to know their HIV status at the same time, ” he said.
On the training, Bashorun said it would ensure the right usage of the product and also to monitor its performance and operational effectiveness on the field.
He said,” Following the ToT over 900 additional testers would be trained across the 774 LGAs through regional training in all the six geopolitical zones of Nigeria. The training starts on Thursday, November 23, 2023, in Abuja.”
