The 1^st of December of every year is designated as world AIDS day. The theme for this year’s event is “Getting to Zero” and in Nigeria the focus is on, “Elimination of Mother to Child Transmission of HIV/AIDS (eMTCT)”. The current national HIV/AIDS prevalence rate is 4.1%, down from the rate of 4.6% as at 2008. This shows an appreciable success of interventions in HIV/AIDS programming in the country.

The TY Danjuma Foundation’s Community Health Initiatives strategy recognises the importance of free HIV/AIDS interventions in reducing the burden of the disease in Nigeria. To achieve this, TYDF grants to two (2) of its grantees is focused on prevention of new HIV infections in young people and pre-operatively during free medical missions. Action Health Incorporated (http://www.actionhealthinc.org/programmes/) is funded by TYDF to facilitate the effective implementation of nationally approved family Life and HIV Education (FLHE) curriculum in public secondary schools in Taraba and Edo States. Another TYDF grantee, Pro Health international (http://prohealthinternational.info/) ensures compulsory pre-operative HIV screening during provision of free medical missions in Edo and Taraba States.

The activities of these TYDF grantees are in consonance with the World AIDS Day 2011 theme, “Getting to Zero”. As a responsive grantmaker, TYDF through the activities of its grantees is committed to zero new HIV infections, zero discrimination against people living with HIV/AIDS and zero AIDS-related deaths.

For more information on World AIDS Day 2011, please visit http://www.worldaidscampaign.org/world-aids-day/world-aids-day-2011/