The HIV Issue

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The HIV Issue
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The Nigerian Situation

According to President Olusegun Obasanjo, the 2005 sentinel survey “has further confirmed that the HIV/AIDS epidemic in Nigeria is a public health problem of enormous magnitude that must be given priority attention. It has affected all parts of our country with varying degrees of magnitude".

NACA estimates that approximately 4.4% (3.5 million people) were living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria. Ages 15 – 24 years had the highest national prevalence of 15-19.4%.

According to the UNAIDS 2006 Report on the Global AIDS Epidemic, an estimated 220,000 children and adults died of AIDS in 2005 in Nigeria. As shocking as these deaths are, the impact does not end with their deaths. People dying of AIDS are in the prime of their lives and are often parents. One of the most visible and immediate social impacts of the epidemic is, therefore, the rapidly growing number of orphaned children.

According to UNICEF the last ten years have seen a surge in the number of orphans and as many as 1.8 million of the estimated seven million orphans in Nigeria have been orphaned by AIDS. The children affected by HIV/AIDS are emotionally vulnerable, financially desperate, face a greater risk of being abused and are exposed to stigmatization, isolation and neglect.

This situation has created a burden for STILL WATERS in Nigeria, and the need for it to strategically intensify its role in addressing HIV/AIDS/Reproductive Health related needs of children, through capacity building and support initiatives. Based on STILL WATERS experience in the field of HIV/AIDS prevention, support and care services, there is need to strengthen the capacity of both young people and adults in QIC/UEC institutions and communities to adequately and effectively participate in the management and control of HIV/AIDS and its related prejudices in their local settings

As It Is...

HIV/AIDS continues to ravage populations across the Nigerian community, particularly in the communities where STILL WATERS and its founding church works. The prevalence rates for these communities are worrying, and worsening in some cases. This progressively impacts negatively on Nigeria’s health development efforts.

Across the country, both government and non-governmental bodies have invested huge resources to control the developmental tendencies of HIV/AIDS and develop strategies to mitigate the negative impacts of HIV/AIDS on all the sectors on the Nigeria society. This is evident in the various AIDS initiatives being implemented at the national, state and local government levels, which include provision of antiretroviral drugs, awareness raising, voluntary counselling and testing and capacity building activities.

Despite these ever-increasing efforts, many communities have inadequate information about HIV/AIDS transmission and prevention, poor access to care and support and VCT services, particularly youth friendly services. In many of the communities where STILL WATERS works there is an increasing prevalence of abuse of the fundamental human rights of PLWHA, gender inequalities, barriers of stigma, discrimination, and denial related to HIV/AIDS. There are deplorable attitudes toward the care and treatment of those infected and affected, and inadequate understanding of the impact of the epidemic on the various aspects of life in the communities.

Although STILL WATERS as a faith based organization has been involved in addressing some of these challenges through community groups, instilling spiritual and moral strengths and building capacities for HIV/AIDS related stigma reduction, more still needs to be done to achieve optimum results. By virtue of QIC/UEC membership strength of 1.5 million and institutional outreach, STILL WATERS has a perspective of the individual community member and families, as a representation of the community constellation to uniquely play an effective role in the local efforts to combat the HIV/AIDS epidemic. Drawing freely on the abilities and time of committed community church member volunteers, STILL WATERS helps put knowledge into practice, and everyone in the community benefits. The aim of this project is to empower institution’s policymakers, group leaders, health workers and Community AIDS Response Teams (CARTs) to address the problem of stigma, discrimination, inadequate understanding and denial related to HIV/AIDS.

Photo Credits: Billy Abwa