.decries declining donor support

By Peter Duru, Makurdi

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Nigeria has appealed to the Benue State House of Assembly to consider increasing budgetary allocation to the health sector to strengthen the fight against HIV/AIDS, Tuberculosis (TB), and other diseases.

The appeal was made by the Senior Advocacy and Marketing Manager of AHF Nigeria, Mr. Steve Aborisade, during a meeting with the Speaker of the Benue State House of Assembly, Mr. Alfred Emberga, in Makurdi.

Aborisade said the call for increased funding had become necessary due to declining financial support from international donor agencies, a development he noted was already affecting health interventions across the country.

According to him, significant progress has been made in reducing the prevalence of HIV/AIDS in recent years, but dwindling donor funding could jeopardize the gains recorded so far.

“We have been making progress, but the problem now is that donor funding is declining, and it could take us back to where we were coming from. We are concerned that if that happens, we may never fully recover from the setback,” he said.

He stressed the need for greater resource mobilization from local sources, urging the state government, local governments, and individuals to contribute towards sustaining healthcare interventions.

He said “We are essentially talking about mobilizing resources locally. The state should support, local governments should support, and individuals should also support.

“We are appealing to the Benue State House of Assembly to consider improving the allocation to the health sector. That is the main reason for this visit, to plead with the House to look at increasing what the state government commits to healthcare.

“Particularly because we work in the areas of HIV and TB, which are closely linked and remain serious public health concerns.

“We will be happy if this can be achieved.
We are not asking for too much, but perhaps a modest increase from the current allocation so that more funding can be directed towards combating these diseases,” Aborisade added.

He further disclosed that “AHF is the world’s largest HIV/AIDS healthcare organization, providing cutting-edge medicine, advocacy, and healthcare services to more than 2.9 million people in over 50 countries, including the United States and nations across Africa, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Asia-Pacific region, and Eastern Europe.

Responding, Speaker Alfred Emberga acknowledged the numerous financial demands facing the Benue State Government but assured the delegation that their request would be conveyed to Governor Hyacinth Alia.

He reaffirmed the Assembly’s commitment to supporting the policies and programmes of Governor Hyacinth Alia’s administration geared towards enhancing healthcare services and improving the welfare of the people of Benue State.