Panic As 77 Out Of 2156 Persons Tested Positive To HIV In Taraba

Panic As 77 Out Of 2156 Persons Tested Positive To HIV In Taraba—The Taraba  Government on Sunday said 77 persons tested HIV-positive out of 2,156 tested during the ongoing mass testing and treatment to ensure HIV-free society by 2030.

Dr Garba Danjuma, Director-General, Taraba State Agency for the Control of Aids (TACA),  disclosed this during TACA’s weekly review performance of the Implementation by partners working across HIV, tuberculosis, Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC).

He noted that 36,396 victims of HIV in Taraba  were already under regular treatment while 20,200 others had been virally suppressed.

“It is our hope that the name HIV should not be found in Taraba State by 2030.

“During our mass testing and treatment project over the weekend, only 77 persons were confirmed positive for the virus out of 2,156 tested across 16 local government areas of the state.

“We tested 359 children of between 0-14 years old.

“The 76 out of the 77 victims have already been linked for treatment with various health facilities across the state,” he said.

Dr Joseph Chiegil, team leader, Reaching Impact and Saturation Epidemic Control (RISE Nigeria),which is partnering with TACA, commended Taraba  Government for the steps to ensure the elimination of HIV/AIDs by 2030.

He pledged  his organization’s continuous support to ensure the agency succeeded in its drive to kick out  HIV