The United States government has granted a reprieve to millions of people living with HIV in Nigeria and “54 other countries.”
An “emergency humanitarian waiver” was approved, ensuring uninterrupted US-funded HIV treatment despite a recent funding pause ordered by President Donald Trump.
The waiver comes as a relief to over 20 million people worldwide, including 566,000 children under 15, who rely on the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) for life-saving treatment.
The joint United Nations programme on HIV/AIDS in a statement said, “UNAIDS welcomes this waiver from the US government which ensures that millions of people living with HIV can continue to receive life-saving HIV medication during the assessment of US foreign development assistance,”
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UNAIDS noted that the waiver “recognises PEPFAR’s critical role in the AIDS response and restores hope to people living with HIV.”
Toyin Aderibigbe, spokesperson for the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), in a statement on Thursday, welcomed the US government’s waiver, acknowledging Nigeria’s reliance on foreign aid.
“The Nigerian government would intensify domestic resource mobilisation strategies towards ownership and sustainability of the HIV response in the country,” Aderibigbe said.
Nigeria, she said, aims to reduce its dependence on donor aid and “achieve the target of ending AIDS by 2030.”
The US government, through PEPFAR, has been instrumental in supporting Nigeria’s HIV/AIDS response, covering approximately 90% of the treatment burden.
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