By Peter Duru, Makurdi

Over two million persons are reported to have been provided in-care HIV/AIDS services by the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, AHF, globally.

The AHF Nigeria Country Director, Dr Echey Ijezie made this known at an event to mark the milestone achieved in the 20 years of the foundation.

The country Director who expressed delight at the attainment explained that the programme which had today reached 47 countries started in South Africa and Uganda with 100 patients in each country.

He said: “We are immensely proud to reach this historic milestone with the global programs launched 20 years ago in South Africa and Uganda with 100 patients each.

“We never imagined we will be serving two million lives under our care around the world. At the time we started, it cost $5,000 per patient annually for ARVs. Today, more than half of AHF’s two million lives are receiving care are in Africa.

“The combination of medicine and advocacy implementing prevention, care, and treatment programs and the support of government and other international donors have allowed us to reach this momentous achievement collectively.

“In Nigeria, we started with a zero patient base in 2011, but today, we have 29,000 in care under the Nigeria program, many of them in very remote locations in Abuja, Anambra, Akwa Ibom, Benue, Cross river, Kogi and Nasarawa states.”

Dr. Ijezie who reiterated the commitment of AHF to advocating for services and the wellbeing of those living with HIV/AIDS assured that the foundation would always leverage on ingenious healthcare delivery models to expand its reach and impact.

The Technical Officer, HIV, Viral Hepatitis and STI, World Health Organization, WHO,-Nigeria, Oluwafunke Odunkade who urged for continued services for all those brought under care said “while we celebrate, we must be reminded that this is not the end.

“We still have the last hurdle to cross, and we can only achieve that by collaboratively rethinking our strategies.

“We are ensuring that HIV is fully mainstreamed into the health systems and not standing alone and also ensuring that all the people that we brought into care have the optimum level of care. It is not just for us to have the numbers, but it is important that they have optimum care.”

The Director Public Health Department, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Chukwuma Anyaike, commended AHF’s attainment saying “we are excited to be working with AHF, who stands out in their robustness in getting to the hard to reach areas to support those living with the virus. Their intervention has brought succor and hope for not just the people living with the virus, but others as well.”

The National Coordinator, Network of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, NEPWHAN, Abdulkadir Ibrahim, said the over two million persons in care treatment shows AHF’s commitment to ending the virus globally.

He said: “Putting two million lives on treatment shows that we are moving towards ending AIDS in Nigeria and globally. By this it shows that AIDS is no longer a public threat as people are living and accessing treatment and living healthy lives.”