HUMANITY FAMILY FOUNDATION FOR PEACE AND DEVELOPMENT (HUFFPED) ANTI – AIDS CONFERENCE

Day 1 Report (16th October, 2012)

Opening: Commencement time was 10:30am. The programme was anchored by Stephen Oguntoyinbo and Omotola. Prayers were said by a Christian and Muslim brethren respectively to start the sessions.

Introduction: Members of the high table were formally introduced by the comperes as they took their seats.

Word From Humanity: The conveners of the Conference; Mrs. Kemi Adeyeye and Mr. Henry Adenigba in a thrilling manner, recognized individuals and corporate bodies that have made the Conference a reality. They were specific in their appreciation of LSACA and AHF Nigeria. They mentioned that the inspiration behind the Conference was the death of a young South African boy of HIV/AIDS nine years back.

Chairman’s Address: The Chairman of the Conference was duly represented. He thanked the brains behind the project, thanked the attendees for gracing the Conference and wished everyone fruitful deliberations.

Chairman Board of Trustees Address: Engr. G.O Okanlawon welcomed all and sundry to the Conference, stating that it has not been a smooth sail but a journey with many challenges.

Goodwill Messages: There were goodwill messages from NACA, LSACA, PACT, AHF and ENR.

Fraternal Greeting: The Baale of Imota, Ikorodu (Alh. Rabiu Isiaka Olawale) graced the occasion and commented that he was impressed with the large turn – out of attendees.

Drama Presentation: Heavy Rain Entertainment presented a short drama which centered on making a change as regards HIV/AIDS via: advocacy, awareness specifically focusing on the grassroots.

Event Flag – Off: The 2 - Day Conference was officially declared open by the Chairman (BOT), Engr. G.O Okanlawon.

Know Your Status: Attendees were informed that a Health Counseling and Testing Centre was available outside the hall to test and counsel the attendees.

Plenary Session: The session panelist was chaired by Prof. Oni Idigbe. The members are: Dr. Segun Oyedeji, Mr. Shina Olulana and Dr. Olawale Salami (AHF).

The Session Lectures:

A)AHF: Dr. Olawale Salami, Country Program Manager AIDS Healthcare Foundation, delivered the lecture titled “Building new Leadership for Treatment Access.” The speaker stressed that “Political Commitment” at the highest levels of government is the most important factor in achieving successful treatment coverage. Countries like Botswana, Namibia, Uganda, Ghana, Senegal, Rwanda, amongst others are examples of Nations with high level of Political Commitment as far as treatment of HIV/AIDS is concerned.

B)LSACA: As delivered by Mrs. Seyi Abejide, the lecture was titled “State Planning for Maximal Impact.” She mentioned that National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), State Agency for the Control of AIDS (SACA), Local Action Committee on AIDS (LACA), Federal Ministries, Departments, Agencies and Development partners as Organizations of the National response. At the state level, there is SACA – Multi-sectorial, public sector – LACA, MDAs, Public hospitals, Private Sector – NGOs, CBOs, FBOs, Development Partners, PSOs. A 5 – year strategic plan has been embarked upon by LSACA since 2010 with full stakeholder participation based on NSF. The challenges include: Poor data culture, poor dissemination of research conducted, very few evaluations and so on.

C)SFH: “Prevention Today: What’s the right Mix?” was the lecture delivered by Dr. Segun Oyedeji. He enlightened the audience that the HIV Prevalence in Nigeria was down to 4.1% from 4.6% with a big but; “Nigeria contributes 29% of Global burden of mother- to-child transmission.” In summary, for an effective prevention plan, there must be (i) a target population, (ii) proven intervention and (iii) high coverage. The process of prevention needs to belong to communities.

D)Where will the money come from? (NiBUCAA)

Mr. Olusina Olutana: the executive secretary of NiBUCAA handled this segment. He gave some heart-breaking and revealing statistics such as:

(i)70% of babies are born HIV positive annually

(ii)Only 415, 000 out of 1.5 million people who are meant to be on treatment have access to ARV

(iii)18% of Nigerians know their HIV status

He stated that NACA has as part of her responsibilities, the mobilization of resources for the prevention and control of the epidemic. Consequently, AIDS sector is commonly regarded as a “spending sector” which leaves us with the question: Where will the money come from?

Questions and Answers Segment

In response to questions, Prof Oni Idime reiterated that modalities have been put in place by NAFDAC and partnering bodies to bring to book individuals or group of individuals who have been advertising drugs, falsely claimed to be cures to HIV AIDS. Till date, no documented drug exists as cure to HIV AIDS. He however urged the audience to avoid being exploited.

Break-Out Session I

Topic: From Evidence to programming: Gender violence in HIV response.

Gender-Based Violence (GBV), she defined as violence involving men and women; derived from unequal power relationships between men and women. It includes physical, sexual and psychological harm such as acts of physical aggression, emotional and psychological abuse, coerced sex, rape, and so on.

Violence against women, on the other hand, is public or private act of Gender-Based Violence that results or likely to result in physical, sexual or psychological harm to women. Gender-Based Violence is rooted in or a manifestation of gender inequality in society. Traditional gender norms perpetuate violence against women.

Break-Out Session II

Topic: The leadership role of the media in reducing and exposing stigma and discrimination

Delivered by Mr. Frederick Adeboye (HIV positive)

He said that HIV has been demonized, criminalized and knowledge/attitude gap of health workers has aided it. The sources of stigma include sex, family, community, religious groups, media and colleagues in the work place. He spoke about his stigma experience stating that he was stigmatized by friends and family when he disclosed his status in 2003. Before then, he was a student of the College of Journalism owned by the News Magazine. His admission was withdrawn which later was restored through the concerted efforts of NACA, media and civil society groups.

Mrs. Olaide Akonmi made the audience realize that ten years ago, the stigmatization was on a high increase but over the years, there have been some improvements even though there is still a long way to go as far as orientation is concerned.

In conclusion, all attendees were urged to take seriously the campaign against stigmatization in our communities.