by Christiana Gokyo, Jos
Plateau State is said to have been on the high rise with HIV/AIDS scourge. In line with this development, members of the public have been advised to play safe; those who cannot maintain abstinence should use condoms.
Our correspondent spoke with Executive Director of Plateau AIDS Control Agency (PLACA), Mrs Martha Swomen, who stated that, “Condom is not too costly, but everybody is advised to go and test.
“We have facilities all round us. Get tested; know your status so that you can live a free live. Without knowing your status, once you are sick you attribute it to the people in your village or community. When you get tested and found positive, you will be placed on treatment and you will live a normal life,” she stressed.
Mrs Swomen observed that, “The population, too, and our young people are into risky behaviours. So, because of that the virus is spreading; once you are into drugs you would know what is happening.
“So, with that you will not know how your behaviour will be, and you can just indulge into risky behaviour and from there you can contact the virus and also give another person. So, you see, it’s spreading,” she stated.
According to her, it is their desire to go on massive sensitization, saying, “We want to print flyers, posters and, you know, with the recent increase in violence in the state this leads to HIV cases.”
The director further explained that, “With the IDP camps, because of the crisis, HIV is also found there because they practice risky behaviours. We want to sensitize people on how to maintain themselves and how to take care of themselves so that the virus would not spread, because it is a global desire that in 2030 HIV would have been controlled by 95 percent.
“When found positive and are placed on drugs and 95 load be virally suppressed, but cannot achieve this desire without funds,” she stressed.
Mrs. Martha Swomen explained that, “The Agency’s mandate was to design and implement State Action plans for prevention and control of HIV and AIDS, and also expected to present and design an intense multi-sentorial approach to HIV/AIDS prevention activities.
“We are in line with ministries, NGOs, CBOs, CSOs, Local Government Areas, private sector the labour sector inclusive, too. We also provide necessary support to other stakeholders in their efforts to prevent HIV/AIDS in the State, which we coordinate annual events’ surveillance on the incidents,” she stated.
According to her, they promote operational research and intervention strategies and encourage multi-disciplinary collaboration and networking among all stakeholders, as well as organise training involved in the control and operations of HIV/AIDS implementation.
She further stated that, they also implement all decisions of the State Council on it and produce quarterly reports on HIV/AIDS control activities.
The Executive Director further explained that, when World Bank was supporting them – “That was from 2011 to 2017 – we achieved a lot, to the extent that our prevalence rate in the state dropped, but after the World Bank withdraw, we are constrained. So, coordinating activities have become difficult for us because the funds are not there for us to coordinate.”
Mrs Swomen noted that, it is their responsibility as an agency coordinating HIV response in the state. “Both health and non-health sectors are to get test kits because it is their responsibility as an agency to get test kits and consumables to these NGOs to get to our communities and test for them,” she said.
“Once they test and find that somebody is positive, they immediately place the person on treatment; but now because we are constrained of funds, we do not have funds to procure these test kits and even go on massive awareness campaign.”
According to her, they are quite aware and have observed from their partners implementing in the state, that HIV is now coming up again, adding that, “You know, we have suppressed it to a very minimal level; we were counted among the least zones.
“But with the World Bank support, we were able to curtail it to a very minimal level, but now HIV is spreading, especially in our communities, and pray God will help us so that we can go to the communities and create awareness to the people,” she stated.
“We have a projected population of 4.2 million people, according to 2018 Report, and we have 17 local government areas; and statistics preference rate from 2010 was 7.7 percent, 2012 was 2.3 percent, while 2014 was 9.5 percent and 2018 was 1.6 percent, and that was after the World Bank support,” she explained.
She said, “After then we have not done any survey again; but with the monitoring and education report that we are getting from partners, the data we are getting as at now is that HIV virus is on the increase again in the state.
“This government just came in; so, we are trying to see how we will go on advocacy to the government to see how they will give their own support,” she said, and called on the good spirited individuals, companies, business people to come to their aid in anyway.