President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday called on pharmaceutical companies to consider a reduction in the cost of anti-retroviral drugs as a major way to end the scourge of HIV/AIDS.
Buhari spoke at a programme organised by the National Agency for the Control of AIDS on the sideline of the ongoing 70th United Nations General Assembly holding in New York, the United States.
The President said the world was on the threshold of history as leaders adopted the successor development agenda to the Millennium Development Goals.
He recalled that for over 30 years, HIV as a public health challenge had been causing havoc and untold hardship in virtually every part of the world.
Buhari said till date, several millions of children had been orphaned and some communities devastated, while economic activities had been disrupted.
According to him, the Sub-Saharan Africa bears a disproportionate burden of the epidemic.
He said the good news was that the effort of the global community had resulted in a greater control, less spread and better management.
The President said what was required in the continued fight against the disease was improved health delivery system, education and cheaper production of drugs.
He said, “We have made significant progress towards the interception of mother-to-child transmission of HIV.
“In 2014 alone, over three million pregnant women were tested for HIV and 63,000 of these tested women, accessed anti-retroviral therapy.
“What is required in our continued fight against HIV/AIDS are improved health delivery system, education, and cheaper production of anti-retroviral drugs through technology exchange.
“Our countries should also look at the whole field of medicare and strengthen our partnership with all stakeholders, including the civil society, inter-faith and cultural bodies for education and dissemination of information at all levels.
“Nigeria will also like to call upon all pharmaceutical companies for more cooperation and understanding in reducing the cost of anti – retroviral drugs through production of generic items.”
Buhari promised that Nigeria would continue to work with development partners and key stakeholders to strengthen the means of implementation of the SDGs as elaborated in the Post-2015 Development Agenda.
At the continental level, he said Nigeria remains fully committed to the outcome of the Abuja process as evident in the 2002 Declaration, the Action Framework on Roll – Back Malaria.
