AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Nigeria has developed a community-based radio programme, “Mentor Mothers”, aimed at the prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission of HIV (PMTCT) and maternal health to curb pediatric infections across the federation.

Senior Advocacy and Marketing Manager, AHF Nigeria, Mr Steve Aborisade, stated this during a focus group discussion involving PMTCT coordinators, mentor mothers and traditional births attendants (TBAs), yesterday, in Abuja.

Aborisade said the programme would be aired weekly on ASO Radio to address gaps in awareness and access to prevention services, particularly at the community level, as well as to highlight successes in PMTCT.

He noted that mother-to-child transmission of HIV remained a significant challenge in Nigeria, largely due to limited knowledge about prevention options among pregnant women.

“We realised that in Nigeria, one of the major gaps in HIV programming is paediatric HIV, that is, transmission from mothers to their unborn children, which remains quite prevalent, and we want to eliminate it,” he said.

Aborisade explained that the organisation was leveraging radio to reach a wider audience, especially women in underserved communities, with accurate information on prevention and treatment.

According to him, the programme would run weekly for 13 weeks, forming a full quarter of targeted radio engagement.

The advocacy manager said the initiative had already commenced in Benue State, where it recorded strong audience participation, with listeners calling in to ask questions and seek guidance.

He added that the campaign complemented ongoing community-based interventions, including the engagement of mentor mothers and TBAs to raise awareness.

Aborisade explained that mentor mothers, women living with HIV, who had successfully delivered HIV-negative babies, were being deployed to educate and support others within their communities.

He said the organisation had convened stakeholders to deliberate on the effective use of radio, identify relevant discussion topics, and develop strategies to engage target audiences.