Nigeria HIV response remains a public health success story, says Isaac Adewole, who urges stronger domestic funding to sustain progress

Former Minister of Health and Nigeria’s Ambassador-designate to Canada, Isaac Adewole, on Tuesday described the Nigeria HIV response as one of the greatest public health success stories of modern times while urging stronger efforts to sustain the gains achieved over the past decades.

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Adewole spoke at the 25th anniversary celebration and public health symposium of APIN Public Health Initiatives in Abuja, where health experts, government officials and development partners reviewed progress made in tackling HIV/AIDS and discussed strategies for preserving those achievements.

“The HIV response remains one of the great public health success stories of our time. Free and subsidised antiretroviral therapy, decentralised HIV care and prevention services have helped improve outcomes for millions of people,” Adewole said.

According to him, expanded access to antiretroviral treatment, prevention of mother-to-child transmission programmes, behavioural interventions and community-based healthcare services have contributed significantly to reducing new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths across Nigeria.

Adewole noted that the Nigeria HIV response demonstrates the impact of sustained investment, strategic partnerships and evidence-based public health policies.

The former minister said similar progress had also been recorded in maternal and child health, tuberculosis control, malaria prevention and immunisation programmes over the last three decades.

He highlighted improved vaccination coverage, better nutrition, stronger maternal healthcare services and increased access to life-saving medicines as major factors behind reductions in maternal and child mortality.

Adewole further pointed to advances in tuberculosis control through the expansion of Directly Observed Treatment Short-course programmes, wider deployment of GeneXpert diagnostic technology and improved integration of tuberculosis and HIV services.

He also cited malaria interventions, including the distribution of insecticide-treated nets, expanded access to artemisinin-based combination therapies, rapid diagnostic testing and the introduction of malaria vaccines, as key contributors to improved health outcomes.

Despite the progress, Adewole warned that emerging threats such as antimicrobial resistance, climate change, pandemics, economic shocks and declining international donor support could undermine hard-won gains if health systems are not strengthened.

“We need to do more than ever before to ensure that these gains are sustained,” he said.

The former minister stressed that domestic financing had become increasingly critical as traditional donor countries continue to reduce overseas development assistance.

“The issue of local funding has become critical, and countries must now use their own resources in order to address health challenges,” he added.

Representing the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Temitope Ilori, Director-General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS, praised APIN’s contributions to Nigeria’s healthcare sector over the last 25 years.

Ilori said the organisation emerged at a time when the country’s HIV epidemic was characterised by widespread stigma, fear and fragile healthcare systems.

“Twenty-five years ago, the public health landscape was quite daunting. We were facing the rising tide of the HIV epidemic, a crisis marked by stigma, despair and fragile healthcare infrastructure,” she said.

She described APIN as one of Nigeria’s leading indigenous public health organisations, noting that it currently supports treatment services for nearly 20 per cent of Nigerians living with HIV.

“Today, we celebrate the fact that APIN manages treatment for almost 20 per cent of people living with HIV across Nigeria and is contributing immensely to the decline in HIV prevalence across the country,” Ilori said.

According to her, APIN now operates in 30 states and has played a pivotal role in strengthening laboratory networks, supporting strategic health information systems, conducting community surveys and building public health capacity nationwide.

She added that the organisation’s programmes align with the Federal Government’s Health Sector Renewal Investment Initiative and have expanded access to HIV services through primary healthcare facilities.

Ilori, however, cautioned against complacency, warning that significant challenges remain.

“The persistent HIV burden among key populations, the threat of drug-resistant tuberculosis, the rise of non-communicable diseases and the need for more sustainable domestic health financing remain important challenges,” she said.

In his remarks, APIN Chief Executive Officer Prosper Okonkwo said the organisation remained committed to supporting Nigeria’s health priorities despite shifts in the global funding landscape.

“As we look to the future, we do so with great enthusiasm and expectation, even as the global health funding landscape continues to shift in ways that few of us would have predicted a few years ago,” Okonkwo said.

He said APIN would continue leveraging its workforce, technology, institutional systems and strategic partnerships to improve health outcomes nationwide.

Founded in 2000, APIN Public Health Initiatives began as an HIV/AIDS prevention, treatment and research programme before evolving into one of Nigeria’s foremost indigenous public health organisations.

Over the last 25 years, the organisation has expanded its work beyond HIV programmes to include tuberculosis control, malaria interventions, maternal and child health services, disease surveillance, laboratory strengthening and broader health systems development.

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Health experts at the symposium agreed that while Nigeria has made powerful strides in reducing HIV infections and expanding access to treatment, sustaining those gains will depend on stronger domestic financing, resilient healthcare systems and continued collaboration among government institutions, communities, development partners and indigenous organisations.