As Nigeria celebrates Children’s Day 2025, the Director General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Temitope Ilori, has warned that thousands of babies are still being born with HIV each year.
Ms Ilori, in a statement to commemorate the day, described the situation as a preventable tragedy that continues to threaten the health and future of Nigerian children.
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She said Prevention of Mother-To-Child Transmission (PMTCT) services remains one of the most effective strategies in ending paediatric HIV and ensuring that no child is born with the virus.
She stressed the need for stronger action to protect children from preventable infections.
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“Children’s Day is a reminder that we must do everything within our power to protect the next generation,” she said.
“This includes ensuring that every pregnant woman has access to early testing, and if positive, is put on treatment and continuous care throughout pregnancy, delivery and breastfeeding.”
HIV burden
While Nigeria has made strides in expanding HIV services for pregnant women, the country continues to carry one of the world’s highest burdens of paediatric HIV.
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According to a 2023 report by the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), West and Central Africa bears a disproportionate burden of the global paediatric HIV crisis.
The region accounts for 26 per cent of all children living with HIV, and four in every ten with new HIV infections among children and adolescents globally.
In 2022 alone, an estimated 308 adolescents in the region acquired HIV every week, with girls making up 9 in 10 of new infections among adolescents.
The report further revealed that 20 per cent of all pregnant women living with HIV are in West and Central Africa, yet 48 per cent of them are not receiving treatment.
Of the 400,000 children living with HIV in the region, only 37 per cent are currently on life-saving antiretroviral therapy.
Ms Ilori said the failure to fully eliminate mother-to-child transmission is a clear indication that more work needs to be done, particularly in confronting the stigma that discourages many women from accessing care.
A shared responsibility
Nigeria has pledged to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV in line with global targets to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
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But the continued transmission of the virus to infants raises concerns about the effectiveness and reach of existing interventions.
Ending paediatric HIV, according to Ms Ilori, requires the collective commitment of all stakeholders.
She called on healthcare providers to deliver quality, respectful care to women and children, while urging community and faith-based organisations to raise awareness and challenge the stigma that discourages many women from seeking care.
She added that families and caregivers must support women to access and adhere to treatment throughout pregnancy, childbirth and breastfeeding.
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