Tunji Alausa: Honored to attend the HIV Continuum of Care Summit in Abuja

Tunji Alausa, Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Federal Republic of Nigeria, shared a post on X:

“I was honored to attend the HIV Continuum of Care Summit in Abuja. In line with the 2nd pillar (improving health outcomes) of our 4-point agenda, this event reaffirms our commitment as a government to end the HIV/AIDS epidemic by 2030. For too long, Nigeria has relied on the importation of basic products like RDTs that we have the capacity to produce locally.

That’s why we have engaged two manufacturing plants to produce RDTs and HIV/AIDS test kits, set to be commissioned this December. That being said, we implore all manufacturers interested in producing HIV/AIDs related products to domesticate their operations and manufacture locally.

The Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare under the leadership of the Federal Government will provide all necessary logistics support needed. However, we still need all our development partners, as well as device and pharmaceutical manufacturers, to support our renewed efforts to localize manufacturing within our country.

Unlocking our healthcare value chain through industrialisation is key to the growth & sustainability of our health system. Our goal is to ensure that everyone living with HIV receives timely, quality care, achieving viral suppression and improved health outcomes. As we strive toward the global goal of eliminating HIV/AIDS by 2030, I urge everyone to remain committed and steadfast.

I extend my gratitude to the organisers for their leadership and innovation in HIV diagnostics, and to our development partners — WHO Nigeria, WHO , The Global Fund, PEPFAR (US Centers for Disease Control & Prevention, USAID, and DoD), CHAI, NEPWHAN-Nig, pharmaceuticals, and other key stakeholders—for their invaluable commitment to controlling HIV/AIDS in Nigeria. Together, we can make a meaningful difference in the lives of those affected.”