Kano to partner NGOs to achieve zero HIV prevalence

Dr Usman Bashir, the Director-General, Kano State Agency for the Control of AIDS (KSACA), says the agency will partner with any group to achieve zero HIV prevalence in the state.

This is contained in a statement signed by the KSACA Public Relations Officer, Malam Usman Gwadabe, a copy of which was made available to News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Kano on Monday.

According to the statement, Bashir made the remark when a delegation led by Dr Usman Gebi from Friends for Global Health Initiative in Nigeria (FGHIN) paid him a courtesy visit in his office.

He said the benefit of partnership with FGHIN on provision of comprehensive care to people living with HIV, could not be overemphasised, adding that their support had alleviated the sufferings of many patients.

The director-general told the delegation that the partnership between the two organisations was timely considering the fact that the present administration under Gov Abdullahi Ganduje was committed to reform and upgrade healthcare delivery in the state.

He also told the delegation that a comprehensive HIV Development Strategic Plan for five year (2017- 2022) has been drafted, assuring that the agency will ensure its successful implementation.

He said within one-year of his tenure, about 2,000 personnel were trained on HCT, PMCTC, Monitoring and Evaluation as well as health workers on safeguard programmes.

The leader of the delegation had earlier commended KSACA for initiating a number of programmes within a short period of time.

“We are here on three purposes, one to appreciate the state government’s effort for sustaining public healthcare delivery effectively.

“Secondly to inform the management that the five-year FGHIN programme in the state is ending this year and hope that the activities of these years will be properly documented for presentation to funding agency,’’ he said.

Gebi expressed hope that the director-general would ensure that patients receive the needed services being provided by FGHIN before the new partner arrives.

He assured that ART drugs would be supplied to the centres that would last up to first quarter of 2018.