Nigeria’s HIV Response Depends on Stronger Domestic Funding
Nigeria’s HIV Response Depends on Stronger Domestic Funding
In early 2025, the United States announced a temporary pause in foreign aid that affected several health programmes in Nigeria. In Lagos, a young mother arrived at her clinic for a routine viral load test only to learn that community testing teams had been withdrawn. In Benue, a peer educator supporting key populations was informed that his programme had been “paused until further notice”. These are not isolated incidents. They reflect the real-life consequences of a system that remain dependent on external funding and vulnerable to shifts in foreign policy.
These disruptions come at a time when the world is closer than ever to ending AIDS as a public health threat, yet still off track to meet the 2030 global targets. Globally, an estimated 40.8 million people are living with HIV globally, 1.3 million people acquired HIV last year, while 630,000 people died from AIDS-related illnesses. While new infections have declined by 40% and AIDS-related deaths have reduced by 54% reduction since 2010, progress is not fast enough to reach the 2030 targets.
The Eighth Replenishment: a warning signal for Nigeria
of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria is the fundraising cycle for 2026–2028. The Global Fund called for US$18 billion, noting that this level of investment could save 23 million lives, prevent about 400 million infections or cases, and reduce deaths from HIV, TB and malaria by roughly 64 percent compared to 2023. Nigeria is one of the Fund’s largest partner countries, receiving about US$933 million for the 2024–2026 grant cycle for HIV, TB, malaria and health systems strengthening. Nigeria’s 2026–2028 allocation will be determined by the Eighth Replenishment, so a weaker global pledging outcome will almost certainly result in tighter grants and more difficult choices about essential services.