NACA boss wants legal protection from HIV-related discrimination

The Director General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Dr. Sani Aliyu, has advocated legal protection from HIV-related discrimination.

He also called for the implementation of the national HIV and AIDS Anti-Discrimination Act 2014, as well as other strategies that address stigmatisation and discrimination.

He said this over the weekend in Abuja at a national advocacy forum, noting that lack of protective legislation, enforcement and non-existence of punitive laws could feed stigma and discrimination, and hinder access to HIV services for people living with the disease.

He said: “The Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Chapter IV, sections 33 to 44 offer general protection against discrimination and protects the rights of Nigerians. Additionally, in 2014, the national HIV and AIDS Anti-Discrimination Act of the Federal Republic of Nigeria was passed into law.

“The Act is written for and applies to all persons living with and affected by HIV and AIDS in Nigeria. The Act makes it an offence to discriminate on the basis of one’s real or perceived HIV status.

“To popularise the Act, NACA in collaboration with its partners simplified it into pictorial and abridged versions. We have also translated the Act into the three major Nigerian languages as well as Pidgin English.”