Nigeria Enrolls 6.5 Million Pregnant Women in Health Scheme

The Nigerian government has successfully enrolled 6.5 million pregnant women in a disease prevention scheme, marking a significant milestone in efforts to eliminate mother-to-child transmission of HIV, hepatitis B, and syphilis. Mr. Tajudeen Ibrahim, the Executive Secretary of the Country Coordinating Mechanism for the Global Fund, highlighted this achievement during the 14th Ministerial Oversight Committee meeting on the Basic Health Care Provision Fund held on Tuesday in Abuja.

The initiative aims to ensure that 99% of pregnant women are tested for HIV by 2025, surpassing the national target of 95%. The program also aims to address the 42,000 new HIV infections projected for 2025, with antiretroviral coverage currently at 77%.

Furthermore, the meeting noted that Nigeria has made progress in tuberculosis and malaria management, with 2.8 million community-based TB cases detected and over 1.1 million participants enrolled in malaria interventions. The Global Fund has provided $3 million to support these efforts, emphasizing the need for improved health management information systems.