In the last 14 months, the state has worked with the Catholic Caritas Foundation of Nigeria (CCFNG) to achieve 82.8% HIV Treatment Current (TX CURR) and 98% suppression rates, according to Abia State Health Commissioner Dr. Joe Osuji.
He stated this at a stakeholder forum in Umuahia, the state capital, which also marked the official launch of the ACCESS project for the accelerated control of the HIV epidemic and sustainability solution.
According to him, the state has done very well following CCFNG’s stellar performance, achieving Treatment Current (TX CURR) of 48,288 (82.8% Treatment Saturation), 71% Viral Load Coverage, and 98% Suppression Rate in just 14 months.
However, he noted that “CCFNG was fortunate to work inside an already established, structured HIV/AIDS platform set by the state government through the Ministry of Health and conducted a large community incentives push that carried the programe to the remote and hard-to-reach sections of the state.
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He added that numerous implementing partners had helped the state up until 2021, naming two in particular: FHI and the federal government, which received financing from the Global Fund through the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA).
The Commissioner, who called for greater cooperation with CCFNG in accordance with the tripartite agreement, added, among other things, that the state Health Ministry would train 40 physicians, 40 pharmacists, 40 laboratory scientists, and 60 nurses and midwives in June 2021 on how to deliver different services with an emphasis on community ART and the community pharmacy model to ensure ease of access to care.
The Commissioner claims that the state will also launch a 30-person team for the Integrated Specimen Referral Network in 2022. This team will visit 14 facilities and hubs, create a budget for the state budget, and partner with 133 private laboratory owners.
In his challenge to Nigerian leaders to work for the welfare of the people, CCFNG Executive Director Rev. Father Uche Obodoechina promised that through the ACCESS Project, Nigeria would be given a sustained strategic implementation of the organization’s goals with assistance from the American government.
Dr. Amana Effiong, the director of the ACCESS Project, stated that the emphasis would be increased on the provision of anti-retroviral drugs, more free testing, HIV medical outreaches in hinterlands, training of more health workers, provision of test kits, increased awareness campaigns, etc. during the five years of the ACCESS Project, which began in October 2022 to accelerate the war against HIV.
It was shown that the state’s HIV prevalence rate decreased from 2.1% to 1.7%.
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