FG Launches National HIV Vaccine Plan

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Anyim
Pius Anyim,  said yesterday that Nigeria
had made progress in the treatment and prevention of HIV.

He made the statement during the launching of the HIV
vaccine plan in Abuja.

Anyim, who was represented by Dr Henry Akpan, said that the
development of a preventive vaccine would be the ultimate cure for the
epidemic.

He said the Federal Government would continue to support the
fight against HIV/AIDS through the implementation of policies and strengthening
of capacity for the the coordination of the HIV/AIDS programme in the country.

Anyim also said that an attempt in 2001 to develop a national
vaccine plan was overtaken by administrative and financial challenges, adding
that the government was proud that a national HIV vaccine plan had finally been
developed and ready for implementation.

According to him, the plan will not only demonstrate Nigeria’s
leadership role in promoting global policies in Africa, but also demonstrate
the government’s commitment to ensuring the continuous decline of HIV/AIDS in
the country.

“It is our hope that the effective implementation of the
plan will contribute to the global quest for a cure for HIV and advance the
efforts of government to achieve the Million Development Goals (MDGs) related
to HIV,’’ he said.

According to him, the government deeply appreciates the
contribution of all stakeholders, and called for continued cooperation to
effectively implement the plan.

In his comments, Director General, NACA,  Prof. John Idoko said Nigeria was the second
most burdened country in the world with HIV.

He, however, said that the progress being made in the last
decade had been slow.

“The prevalence has come down from 5.1 per cent in 2001 to
4.1 per cent in 2010, with 3.1 million people living with HIV and 500,000 PLWHV
on drugs out of 1.5 million requiring ART,’’ he added.

He also said that there were more ART and HCT sites and more
efforts at prevention in spite of the slow pace coverage.

In his remarks, the U.S. Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr Terence
McCulley, said the collaborative efforts between NACA and international donors
were working.

He said that as part of the U.S. health initiative totalling
more than $600 million a year focusing on HIV, TB, Malaria and other public
health programmes, the event had helped to boost research efforts to improve
health care in Nigeria.

He commended NACA for establishing the New Prevention
Technologies Technical Working Group (NPT TWG).

“It is a diverse group of stakeholders and experts in HIV
prevention technologies, trials and testing, including research, education,
regulatory, policy, ethics and community engagement,’’ he said.

Also speaking, the representative of the Society for Health
Initiative, a donor agency, Mr Wiley Tyan, said that the people would benefit
from improved access to prevention technologies and the opportunity to
participate in future vaccine research.

“Researchers would benefit from improved capacity to conduct
immunological research and surveillance studies critical to supporting HIV
vaccine trials.