Tasi’u Hassan
It was a happy moment for people living with HIV/AIDS in Adamawa state, as they received food items and mats from the State Agency for the Control of AIDS, as new year gifts.
The items according to the Executive Secretary of the Adamawa State Agency for the Control of AIDS (ADSACA), Dr. Boniface Gundiri, were donated by the North East Development Commission, for onwards distribution to the persons living with HIV in the state.
Handing over the donated items to the Adamawa State Network of Persons Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, NEPWHAN, Dr. Gundiri explained that his agency had requested the donation from the Northeast Development Commission, initially intending to distribute the items to HIV patients in commemoration of World AIDS Day in December 2024 .
He, however, said, since the items arrived during the New Year celebrations, the agency decided to present them as a New Year’s gift instead.
The ADSACA Executive Secretary, who appreciated the North East Development Commission, for the support, said the items donated by the Commission are bags of rice, cartons of spaghetti and macaroni, gallons of vegetable oil and mats.
He says “We are most grateful to the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the North East Development Commission (NEDC), Dr. Mohammed Alkali. Let me also use the medium to appreciate our sister and my friend Dr. Batulu Isa, who also works with the North East Development Commission, and she has been a pillar to facilitating this particular donation that we requested for the World AIDs Day Commentation. It is coming at the right time”.
The Executive Secretary explained “The North East Development Commission has given us about 210 bags of rice, 210 cartons of spaghetti and macaroni mixed together, and about 210 gallons of 5litres of vegetable oil and about 105 pieces of mats”.
According to Dr. Gundiri, many HIV patients struggle with food insecurity, which is particularly concerning since their medication requires proper nutrition, emphasizing that the food items will greatly improve their health conditions.
He used the medium to call on those living with HIV but hiding their statuses, to speak up in order to get free treatment and all other necessary supports, as according to him, HIV is not a death sentence.
A member of the agency’s board and the director, prevention of the agency, Mrs. Arziki Sawa and Muhammad Mahmoud, commended the Northeast Development Commission for maintaining a cordial relationship with ADSACA, urging the leaders of the HIV patients to ensure even distribution of the donated items.
Receiving the items at the premises of the ADSACA in Yola, the state Coordinator of the Network of Persons Living with HIV/AIDS in Nigeria, Mr. Dishon Yedibo and his deputy, Alhaji Abdullahi Gyadale, lauded the kind gesture of the agency and the North East Development Commission, and warned all the 21 local government coordinators of the network against diverting the donated items.
The distribution of these food items is a significant step towards making people living with HIV feel valued and relevant in the society.
