The Tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS team of a community-based non-profit organisation, The Patriots for Community Wellness and Values (THE PATRIOTS), is set to lead a programme aimed at curbing tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS in Ogun State.
The programme, the Grant Cycle Seven (GC7) TB/HIV intervention project, which is part of an international effort to control tuberculosis and HIV/AIDS at the grassroots, is funded by The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis, and Malaria (The Global Fund).
In a statement announcing the programme, Mr. Semiu Adesanya, the Chief Executive Officer of THE PATRIOTS, noted that “THE PATRIOTS will be leading the Ogun state’s arm of the project in collaboration with the Institute of Human Virology, Nigeria and Damien Foundation Nigeria”.
THE PATRIOTS is the Lead Community Based Organization (CBO) to implement the programme in Ogun State.
“As the state’s lead CBO for the project, our TB/HIV team at THE PATRIOTS has started working with other CBOs at the local levels to implement the programme across the 20 Local Government Areas of Ogun State,” Adesanya added.
Leading the project team are Dr. Lukman Adefuye, Project Director); Mr. Toheeb Mustapha, Director of Research; Pharm. Abdullah Abdul-Razaq, TB Project Manager; and Pharm. Rafiu Kudaisi, HIV/AIDS Project Manager.
“This project offers an uncommon opportunity to critically stem the tide of TB and HIV through public enlightenment and active case findings, as recognized by international bodies worldwide. In line with this guideline, the programme will seek to identify cases of TB and HIV through health communication campaigns and active door-to-door case findings across numerous communities in Ogun State.
“We look forward to working with community leaders and other stakeholders to ensure the success of this internationally funded initiative,” Mustapha, who is also a public health researcher at the University of Louisville, USA, said.
The project comes on the heels of the World Health Organization’s call for intensified efforts to curb tuberculosis in Nigeria. WHO estimates that Nigeria has the highest disease burden in Africa. In 2023, more than 361,000 tuberculosis cases were reported nationwide, and the disease kills around 270 people in the country every day.
Also, about 2 million people aged less than 50 years old are living with HIV in Nigeria. According to global monitoring efforts by the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS), Nigeria ranks fourth in the world with regards to HIV burden, with estimated new infections totaling more than 100,000 every year.
Cases of tuberculosis and HIV are usually underreported, especially in this part of the world due to social stigma associated with these diseases.
“The GC7 project will also help to further destigmatize TB and HIV in our communities and underscore the crucial need for appropriate reporting of new cases. At the end of the project, we hope to have more accurate case reporting, as we continue to develop well-informed future interventions in the fight against TB and HIV,” Mustapha stated.
THE PATRIOTS was established more than 20 years ago and has ever since been at the forefront of providing humanitarian services, especially on health-related issues, to people in the grassroots. It operates by organizing community campaigns featuring health education and awareness through outreach, conduction of free medical tests (including tuberculosis and HIV, among others) and provision of free drugs.
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