Nasarawa State Government had commenced the disbursement of N168 million grant to fight HIV and AIDS in the state.
This followed the signing of an agreement between the state’s AIDS Control Agency, NASACA, and 19 Non-Governmental Organisations, NGOs, on Tuesday in Lafia.
Under the agreement, the organisations would hold sensitisation campaigns in communities to prevent the spread of HIV and AIDS.
Project Manager, Mr Ibrahim Azara, NASACA said the government took the step following the release of the National AIDS Reproductive Health Survey, which placed the state fourth in HIV prevalence in the country.
“This is a practical demonstration of the government’s commitment to help push out HIV and AIDS completely out of Nasarawa state”, he said.
Also, Mallam Abdullahi Hassan, the Agency’s head of community mobilisation, said the initiative would prevent new infections and offer care and support to those already infected.
He enjoined the public to cooperate with the NGOs to carry out their activities in the communities.
Programme manager, Enhancing Nigeria Response, ENR, Mr Mohammed Zachary, called on other NGOs to use the funds judiciously by organising activities that would address the HIV situation in the state.
“Today in Nasarawa State, this issue needs a lot of attention.
“The current statistics tells us 8.1 percent of people are living with the virus, which means that in every one hundred persons, eight of them are HIV positive,” he said.
Some of the beneficiaries described the agreement as “a laudable pragmatic initiative’’.
Among the beneficiaries are the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, Family Health Care Foundation and Jamatu Nasiru Islam, JNI. NAN
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