Stakeholders has urged legislatures to prioritise the passage and implementation of laws that guarantee sustained HIV funding, alongside legislation that ends stigma and promotes inclusive service delivery for people living with the virus.
They made the appeal at the closing ceremony of the 7th National Council on AIDS (NCA) in Lagos, stressing the need for collective action as well as translating the meeting’s resolutions into tangible outcomes.
Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, stressed the need for Nigeria to take full ownership of its HIV programmes by shifting from donor dependency to sustainable, homegrown solutions. He said the country must transition from fragmented responses to coordinated systems and from ad hoc interventions to long-term strategic planning.
Sanwo-Olu, who was represented by Deputy Governor, Obafemi Hamzat, highlighting Lagos State’s initiatives, cited the HIV Trust Fund, the ongoing reform of the HIV Anti-Stigma Law, and the integration of HIV services into broader health systems as evidence of the state’s commitment to dignity, inclusion , and justice. He called on stakeholders to transform the council’s resolutions into actionable policies with real-life impact.
Chairman, House Committee on HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis, Leprosy and Malaria Control, Amobi Ogah, also emphasised the importance of domestic resource mobilisation to sustain Nigeria’s HIV/AIDS response amid evolving global aid policies.
He noted that more than 70 per cent of the country’s HIV funding currently comes from external sources and reaffirmed the parliament’s commitment to increased budgetary allocations and legislative measures for prevention, treatment, research, and anti-stigma efforts.
Ogah raised concerns about the rising prevalence of other infectious and non-communicable diseases among people living with HIV, calling for stronger integration of HIV care into primary healthcare services.
He said Nigeria needs about $8 billion annually to sustain the fight, commending the Federal Government for approving $200 million to address funding gaps after the suspension of US aid. He also announced that a multi-sectoral meeting on domestic financing for public health threats will take place in Abuja from August 11 to 12, 2025.
Director General, National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Temitope Ilori, reaffirmed the council’s role as Nigeria’s highest policy-making and coordinating platform for HIV/AIDS. She said the three-day meeting, themed “Advancing National HIV Sustainability Agenda in the Changing Global Policy on Aid,” underscored the need for innovation and domestic capacity-building in the face of changing international funding trends.
According to her, the decisions reached included boosting national and subnational ownership through increased domestic funding, strengthening mandated government structures as responsibilities transition from implementing partners, and fostering multi-sectoral collaboration to address the socio-economic drivers of HIV.
Ilori urged the accelerated implementation of the National HIV, TB, and Malaria Sustainability Plan to ensure universal access to prevention, treatment, and support services, while commending Lagos State for its hospitality and leadership in the health sector.
The council in its communique, called on all tiers of government, relevant agencies, and partners to treat the development of an integrated HIV response not merely as a reaction to global aid policy changes but as a conscious, existential priority. This, it said, must involve increased domestic funding, strengthened subnational structures, and innovative approaches to guarantee long-term sustainability of integrated HIV prevention, treatment, and care services.
The council declared that the time for a self-reliant and resilient national HIV response is now, noting that the success of the Lagos meeting demonstrated what could be achieved through collective resolve and unwavering commitment.
It praised Lagos State Government through the Lagos AIDS Control Agency (LSACA), describing it as an inspiration and benchmark for collective action, and urged all stakeholders to translate the meeting’s resolutions into tangible outcomes.
Credit: The Sun