An estimated 2.9 million people living with HIV/AIDS out of 3.4 million Nigeria diagnosed last year are
not receiving treatment needed to suppress the infection. Many of them are living in hiding and infecting new people, causing a surge of the disease.
Dr. Sylvia Adebayo, representative of the the population council, Abuja at this year’s world’s AIDS day noted that only 500,000 people are currently on treatment, while 2.9 million men serve as reservoir for the spread of HIV.
Prof. Innocent Ujah, Director general of NIMR regretted that despite the fact that effective service is available for diagnoses and clinical treatment, the AIDS epidemic still claims an estimated two million lives each year globally, of which about 270,000 are children.
He lauded the UNAIDS 90- 90 -90 initiative which is:- 90 percent of all people diagnosed with HIV infection receive sustained ARV therapy and 90 percent of all people receiving ARV will have viral suppression, with 90 percent of those on treatment having viral suppression.
With that there will be drastic break of transmission of new infection and end the HIV/AIDS pandemic by 2030, he said.
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