World AIDS Day: Coalition targets 7 high-risk states, FCT

To commemorate the World AIDS Day, a coalition of groups has kicked-off an advocacy campaign targeting 30,000 people across seven high-risk states ofLagos, Oyo, Imo, Akwa-Ibom, Anambra, Gombe, Kano and Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The coalition is made up of Red-Ribbon Coalition, Youth Empowerment Foundation (YEF), Society for Family Health (SFH), Development Communications Network and convened by Coca-Cola, Nigeria.

Advocacy will include a combination of media awareness, voluntary counseling and testing, public education and awareness sessions as well as entertainment using drama and football.

A statement jointly signed by Iwalola Akin-Jimoh and FunkeAdewoyin of YEF and SFH respectively quoted the National HIV/AIDS Reproductive Health Survey 2012 Plus II as stating that Nigeria has the second largest HIV disease burden in the world, with 3.2million people living with HIV, after South Africa which has 6.8 million burden of the disease.