The federal government has approved an additional sum of $100 million annually to fight the HIV/AIDS pandemic in Nigeria, saying the plan was to identify priority attention and increase domestic resources to fight the pandemics. The Minister of Health, Prof. Onyebuchi Chukwu, thursday disclosed the plan at the 56th National Council on Health meeting held in Lagos with a theme: ‘Health Sector Now and Beyond 2015.’
The minister who addressed the council alongside the Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), and the Commissioners for Health from the 36 states of the federation, said the federal government earmarked on the funds to fight the scourge. He promised that HIV/AIDS would continue “to receive presidential attention. At a recently concluded aids special summits on AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, President Goodluck Jonathan launched his comprehensive response plan on the HIV/AIDS.” Under the plan, the minister acknowledged that the federal government would work in collaboration with the state governments to inject additional $100 million annually in the fight against the HIV/AIDS. He added that the essence of the plan “is to identify priority attention and increase domestic resources to fight this disease. Nigeria will also hold meeting on this new pact at the United Nations General Assembly later this year. We have also made considerable progress in the fight against malaria.”
GBOYEGA AKINSANMI
All Africa
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