190,000 persons infected with HIV/AIDS in Niger

November 3, 2007 :: Abdulazeez Sani,Abuja Leadership,Abuja

No fewer than 190,000 persons are confirmed to be infected by the dreaded HIV/AIDS disease in Niger State.

The director-general of HIV and other communicable diseases in the state, Alh. Baba Umar, who disclosed this in an interview with LEADERSHIP in Minna, put the prevalent rate of the disease in the state at 5.3 percent.

 
Umar said ignorance and poverty are largely responsible for the devastating effects of the disease.

He explained that it was discovered that some medical personnel were yet to be convinced that HIV/AIDS is real, as they believe that those suffering from the disease are sinners who are being punished by God.

According to him, "the vision of the present administration in the state is to, through sensitisation and advocacy visits, reduce the prevalent rate to less than one percent in the next eight years."

The director-general disclosed that there are four centres in Minna, Suleja, Bida and Kontagora, where people living with HIV/AIDS are treated free of charge. Umar stated that the state government will soon sign a memorandum of understanding with an NGO, Management Sciences for Health, to create five additional free treatment centres in Lapai, Bida, New-Bussa, Kagara and Tunga-Magajiya to enable more people have access to anti retroviral drugs.

He said that "our plan is to have a minimum of 15 free treatment centres in different parts of the state by 2010." According to him, it will cost the NGO about N50 million to rehabilitate, provide equipment and drugs in the five proposed centres.

The director-general disclosed that apart from the free treatment, the state government had also commenced the distribution of food items and supplements to people living with the disease to boost their immune level. Umar explained that during the last Sallah celebration, 125 persons in Minna and 70 others from Bida benefited from the gesture.