US, Nigeria Partner to End HIV/AIDS
Godbless Eduviere
In the fight against HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, United States Consul General, F. John Bray has assured of the unwavering commitment of the American government in supporting countries to control the epidemics.
Stating this at the 2016 World AIDS Day in Lagos, tagged: ‘Leadership, Commitment, Impact’ Bray revealed that the United States and Nigeria enjoy a strong relationship based on the many shared interests, especially in the case of HIV/AIDS, adding that both countries have pledged to work to eradicate the epidemic by committing to providing high quality, life-extending care, free from stigma and discrimination.
Speaking of the continuous refine and re-focus to effect these programmes, Bray said: “In late 2015 the U.S. government updated its National HIV/AIDS strategy to extend to 2020. The four primary goals remains; reducing the number of people who become infected with HIV; increasing access to care and improving health outcomes for people living with HIV; reducing HIV-related health disparities; and achieving a more coordinated national response to the HIV epidemic.”
“The Nigerian government is also working to achieve its objective of providing high quality, life-extending care, free from stigma and discrimination. Last week the Nigerian federal government launched a simplified version of its HIV anti-discrimination act to strengthen the HIV response system which is geared towards stopping HIV related stigma by 2020 and eliminating the disease by 2030.”
According to him, the U.S. government’s commitment to ending the AIDS epidemic cannot be overstated, adding that through PEPFAR, they were maximising the impact by making smart investments to reach those most at risk and in need, preventing millions of new HIV infections and saving millions of lives.
“PEPFAR is using data to invest in evidence-based interventions in the geographic areas and populations with the greatest HIV/AIDS burden and accelerating country progress toward achieving epidemic control.
