Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, yesterday, disclosed that more than 30,000 residents of the state living with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) are currently receiving free antiretroviral therapy, counselling, and support services in health facilities across the state.

Abiodun stated this in Abeokuta during the commissioning of the Pharma-Grade Warehouse of the Ogun State Drugs and Health Commodities Management Agency.

He said that his administration had recorded significant milestones in the healthcare sector by repositioning the state’s health system for optimal service delivery, urging residents to take advantage of available healthcare services by visiting hospitals for proper diagnosis and treatment.

According to the governor, the state government has continued to strengthen HIV prevention programmes, expand testing services, and implement measures to reduce new infections.

The governor, while commending the Global Fund for expanding access to HIV treatment in Nigeria and for supporting tuberculosis diagnosis, malaria prevention, and the provision of life-saving medicines and health commodities, said that the Fund’s grants had particularly benefited women, children, adolescents, vulnerable groups, and underserved communities.

He described the newly commissioned warehouse as a strategic investment that would enhance the storage, management, and distribution of essential medicines and health commodities across the state.

“The facility will strengthen supply chain efficiency, reduce stock-outs, and ensure that medicines and test kits reach healthcare facilities and patients across the 20 local councils of the state in a timely manner,” he stated.

Abiodun acknowledged that HIV, tuberculosis, and malaria remain significant public health challenges in the state but assured that his administration, working with development partners, is making steady progress through sustained interventions aimed at reducing their impact.

The governor, who reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to eliminating mother-to-child transmission of HIV, said efforts to combat tuberculosis had also been intensified through community outreach programmes, contact tracing, and hotspot mapping.

Earlier, the state’s Commissioner for Health, Dr Tomi Coker, said the facility was established to improve the delivery of quality healthcare services across the state.

She commended Abiodun for investing in a High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) machine to test the quality of drugs supplied to health facilities, adding that the state government plans to deploy technology to detect low stock levels in medical facilities across the state.

In his remarks, Executive Director of the Global Fund, Peter Sands, described the newly commissioned facility as a critical investment to strengthen healthcare delivery and ensure the timely availability of medicines, vaccines, and diagnostic commodities.