‘Every week, 4,000 young women get HIV’

By Peter Duru

Makurdi— The AIDS Healthcare Foundation, AHF, Nigeria has raised the alarm over the rising rate of new HIV infections among young women, revealing that about 4,000 women aged 15–24 become newly infected with HIV every week, with over 3,300 of those cases occurring in sub-Saharan Africa.

In a statement ahead of the 2025 International Day of the Girl, IDG, AHF Nigeria’s Advocacy and Marketing Manager, Steve Aborisade, urged governments to invest more in HIV and STI prevention, testing, and treatment, alongside policies that improve access to healthcare, education, and reproductive health services.

Aborisade said: “To mark the International Day of the Girl, AHF Nigeria will host an empowerment event at Community Commercial Secondary School, Ikot Oku Ubo, Uyo, on October 10.

“The event will promote menstrual health, leadership, and education while honouring outstanding ideas from girls and distributing free sanitary pads.”

He said civil society partners such as CISHAN, CCCRN, and ECEWS will join the event, alongside officials from the Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Women Affairs.

AHF Nigeria Country Programme Director, Dr. Echey Ijezie, lamented the challenges facing young girls, including poor menstrual health, gender-based violence, and lack of access to sexual and reproductive health services.

“At AHF Nigeria, we are deeply concerned about the barriers confronting young girls. Every week, thousands become infected with HIV because of inequality, poor education, and limited access to health services.”

He disclosed that in 2023, 1.9 million adolescent girls and young women were living with HIV globally, compared to 1.2 million boys and young men.

The International Day of the Girl, marked annually on October 11, he noted, provides an opportunity to celebrate girls’ achievements and advocate for policies that safeguard their futures.

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