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Nigerian gov't says HIV prevalent among homosexuals

Xinhua, December 2, 2015 Adjust font size:

The Nigerian government on Tuesday said that HIV/AIDS is prevalent among homosexuals in the West African country.

HIV prevalence is highest among men who have sex with men at 22.9 percent, followed by 19.4 percent among brothel-based female sex workers," according to statistics released by the Nigerian health ministry.

However, the statistics showed there has been a decline of HIV/AIDS among sex workers in the country.

At a ceremony to mark the World AIDS Day in the Nigerian capital Abuja, the government announced more than three million people are living with HIV in Nigeria, with only 800,000 of them on treatment.

Nigeria marked the 2015 World AIDS Day with the theme "Getting To Zero: Ending HIV/AIDS by 2030".

The country's state minister of health Osagie Ehanire said HIV/AIDS can be curbed in Nigeria if poverty is reduced and access to information is increased.

"To achieve our goals and objectives, we must continue to tackle the root causes of vulnerability such as poverty, sexually transmitted infections, and lack of information and education as well as stigma and discrimination," the said.

Country director of the United Nations program on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) Bilali Camara urged Nigeria to domesticate the fight against HIV by investing in the issue and do more to see how it can match the international resources coming into the country with local response.

"This will trigger an impactful response which can end the HIV epidemic by 2030," the UN official said.

The World AIDS Day, marked on Dec. 1 since the inception of the activity by the World Health Organization in 1988, has annually increased global awareness on the dangers of the deadly disease. Endit