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African Union endorses new initiatives to end AIDS.

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AFRICAN heads of state have endorsed two major new initiatives to help end AIDS by 2030. The community health workers initiative aims to recruit, train and deploy 2 million community health workers across Africa by 2020. The western and central Africa catch-up plan aims to rapidly accelerate access to HIV treatment in the region and close the gap in access between African regions. The initiatives were endorsed at the AIDS Watch Africa Heads of State and Government Meeting, held on 3 July during the 29th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Western and central Africa catch-up plan

Under the leadership of countries and regional economic communities, and in collaboration with UNAIDS, the World Health Organization, Doctors Without Borders and other partners, the catch-up plan in western and central Africa, which started implementation in late 2016, seeks to dramatically accelerate the scale-up of HIV testing, prevention and treatment programmes, with the goal of putting the region on the Fast-Track to meet the 90–90–90 targets by December 2020.

While the world witnesses significant progress in responding to HIV, with 57% of all people living with HIV knowing their HIV status, 46% of all people living with HIV accessing treatment and 38% of all people living with HIV virally suppressed in 2015, the western and central Africa region lags behind, achieving only 36%, 28% and 12%, respectively, in 2015. The gap is considerable: 4.7 million people living with HIV are not receiving treatment, and 330 000 adults and children died from AIDS-related illnesses in 2015.

“We cannot accept a two-speed approach to ending AIDS in Africa,” said UNAIDS Executive Director Michel Sidibé. “To put western and central Africa on track to end AIDS, we must address stigma, discrimination and other challenges to an effective response, allocate funding to support the most effective strategies and implement delivery strategies that reach the communities most in need.”

The catch-up plan will aim to increase the number of people on treatment from 1.8 million to 2.9 million by mid-2018, giving an additional 1.2 million people, including 120 000 children, access to urgently needed treatment.

The first call for a catch-up plan for the region was made at the United Nations General Assembly High-Level Meeting on Ending AIDS in June 2016. Since then, at least 10 countries (Benin, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Guinea, Liberia, Nigeria, Senegal and Sierra Leone) have developed country operational plans deriving from the western and central Africa catch-up plan with a focus on ensuring the needed policy and structural changes.

Two million community health workers

To put western and central Africa on track to end AIDS, we must address stigma, discrimination and other challenges to an effective response

The community health worker initiative aims to accelerate progress towards achieving the 90–90–90 targets by 2020—whereby 90% of all people living with HIV know their HIV status, 90% of people who know their HIV-positive status are accessing treatment and 90% of people on treatment have suppressed viral loads—and to lay the foundation for sustainable health systems. Championed by the President of Guinea and African Union Chair, Alpha Condé, the initiative seeks to confront the acute health workforce shortages across Africa and improve access to health services for the most marginalized populations, including people living in rural areas.

“Recruiting 2 million community health workers is a critical step towards achievement of the Africa-wide socioeconomic transformation envisioned in the African Union’s Agenda 63”, said Mr Condé. “Few tools have the ability of community health workers to drive progress across the entire breadth of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development.”

Substantial evidence, from both Africa and elsewhere, demonstrates that well-trained, properly supervised community health workers provide an excellent quality of care and improve the efficiency and impact of health spending. Community health workers have helped devise some of the most effective service delivery strategies for HIV testing and treatment, and studies have also linked community-delivered services with increased rates of immunization, exclusive breastfeeding and malaria control coverage.

“Sustainable community health work is a matter of survival and development in Ethiopia, said Prime Minister of Ethiopia Hailemariam Desalegn. “My community health workers have made better health happen. Achieving universal health coverage is not possible without building community health systems.”

UNAIDS estimates that there are more than 1 million community health workers in Africa today, but most focus on a single health problem and are under-trained, unpaid or under-paid, and not well integrated in health systems. The new initiative endorsed by AIDS Watch Africa seeks to retrain existing community health workers, where feasible, and to recruit new health workers to reach the 2 million target.

“Few investments generate such a remarkable social and economic return as community health workers,” said Jeffrey Sachs, Director, Earth Institute, Columbia University. “Community health worker programmes are essentially self-sustaining, in that they avert illness, keep workers healthy and productive and contribute to economic growth and opportunity.”

While community health workers may hold the key in many settings to achieving the 90–90–90 targets, the benefits of this new initiative extend well beyond the AIDS response. The initiative will expedite gains across the health targets of Sustainable Development Goal 3, create new jobs that will strengthen local and national economies and offer new opportunities to young people. The new initiative is aligned with the World Health Organization’s Global Strategy on Human Resources for Health.

Start Free Stay Free AIDS Free

At the AIDS Watch Africa meeting, the participants also called on member states and development partners to support the African Union campaign to eliminate new HIV infections among children and keep mothers alive as part of the Start Free Stay Free AIDS Free collaborative framework.

“Complacency gives birth to regression of the gains made in reducing HIV prevalence, said, Yoweri Museveni, President of Uganda. “We in Uganda have rekindled the campaign to end AIDS; the science exists, as well as the medication. We can win this battle.”

AIDS Watch Africa is a statutory entity of the African Union with the specific mandate to lead advocacy, accountability and resource mobilization efforts to advance a robust African response to end AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria by

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Presidency to EFCC, DSS, Police: Expose insiders behind fake presidential agency

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The Presidency on Friday directed the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Police Force to identify and prosecute officials who allegedly collaborated with Adeyemi Adeniyi Matthew in operating the purported Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, a body it described as non-existent.

It also accused the suspect of attempting to drag the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, into what it described as a criminal enterprise through a sustained smear campaign.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Temitope Ajayi, disclosed this in a statement posted on his verified X handle on Friday.

According to Ajayi, investigations must go beyond Adeniyi to uncover those within government institutions who allegedly facilitated his activities.

He said, “What is not in doubt is that internal collaborators enabled Adeniyi to get this far. That is precisely what investigators from the DSS, the Police and the EFCC must now unravel.

“The criminal network within the affected institutions must be dismantled, and everyone found to have played a role should be arrested and prosecuted.”

The presidential spokesman described Adeniyi as “an irredeemable con artist,” accusing him of exploiting public perception about corruption to divert attention from the allegations against him.

He said, “In Nigeria, the easiest and most believable allegation anyone can throw at a public officer is corruption. Once that accusation is thrown into the mix, the water is polluted, the lines are blurred, and everyone is kept busy arguing over distractions rather than the real issues.

“Matthew Adeniyi understands Nigerian public psychology, and he is exploiting it expertly to shield himself. He is an irredeemable con artist who is attempting to drag the name of the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, into his criminal enterprise. The Chief of Staff is simply his last straw.”

Ajayi further alleged that investigators must establish how Adeniyi allegedly forged presidential appointment letters, operated 34 bank accounts in the names of fictitious government agencies, hosted foreign ambassadors and opened a Central Bank account while allegedly parading himself as the Director-General of the non-existent Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council.

He maintained that exposing those who aided the suspect was crucial to dismantling what he described as a criminal network operating within public institutions.

As of the time of filing this report, Adeniyi had yet to publicly respond to the latest allegations by the Presidency.

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Oseni distributes agric inputs to 7,000 farmers, says Tinubu deserves second term

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Thousands of farmers across Ibarapa East/Ido Federal Constituency of Oyo State received a major boost on Monday as the member representing the constituency in the House of Representatives, Engr. Aderemi Oseni, distributed agrochemicals, farm tools and other agricultural inputs to no fewer than 7,000 beneficiaries.

The intervention, aimed at boosting food production and cushioning the impact of rising production costs on farmers, is the latest in a series of agricultural support initiatives facilitated by the federal lawmaker to strengthen farming activities across the constituency.

Before the latest distribution, Oseni had supplied no fewer than six trailers of fertiliser to farmers in Ibarapa East and Ido Local Government Areas to improve crop yields, enhance productivity and support increased agricultural output.

Speaking during the distribution programme held in Ibadan, the All Progressives Congress chieftain said the initiative aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, particularly its commitment to tackling hunger, enhancing food security and improving the livelihoods of Nigerians through increased agricultural production.

‎According to him, the intervention is designed to encourage more people to embrace farming, expand cultivation and contribute meaningfully to national food production.

‎”About 7,000 people are benefiting from today’s empowerment programme. The essence is to continue encouraging farmers within the federal constituency by providing them with the necessary support to improve their productivity,” Oseni said.

‎He stressed that sustained investment in agriculture remained critical to addressing food shortages, reducing the cost of food and strengthening the nation’s economy, noting that agriculture continues to be one of the most viable pathways to sustainable economic growth and national development.

‎The Chairman of the House of Representatives Committee on the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) explained that the earlier distribution of six trailers of fertiliser, the current supply of agricultural inputs and the rehabilitation of rural roads were all part of a comprehensive strategy to improve farming activities and ensure that farmers had the resources and infrastructure required to maximise production during the farming season.

‎He noted that improving access to quality farm inputs, alongside better rural road networks, would enable farmers to cultivate larger portions of land, transport their produce more easily and ultimately increase food availability across the country.

Oseni also expressed confidence that President Bola Tinubu would secure a second term in office in the 2027 presidential election.

According to him, the economic reforms and policy decisions introduced by the Tinubu administration have laid a solid foundation for economic recovery, infrastructure development and improved governance, making the President the preferred choice of many Nigerians ahead of the next general election.

‎”No opposition can stop Nigerians from re-electing President Bola Tinubu. Nigerians need a God-fearing leader like him to continue the work of rebuilding the country.

‎”Since President Tinubu assumed office, fuel scarcity has become a thing of the past. States that previously struggled to pay workers’ salaries now do so more conveniently. Our tax system has been reformed, while road infrastructure and other development projects are expanding across the country,” he said.

‎The lawmaker further pledged to mobilise widespread grassroots support for the President through the Remi Oseni Committee of Friends (ROCOF), expressing confidence that the group would deliver one million votes for Tinubu in Oyo State during the 2027 presidential election.

‎He urged traditional rulers, community leaders, party faithful and other critical stakeholders to rally behind the President’s re-election bid, insisting that one term would not be sufficient to consolidate the reforms already initiated by the current administration.

Oseni also appealed to eligible Nigerians who were yet to register or collect their Permanent Voter Cards to do so ahead of the 2027 general election.

‎He encouraged citizens to participate actively in the electoral process and support President Tinubu and candidates of the All Progressives Congress, saying continued support for the administration would ensure the consolidation of ongoing reforms and accelerate national development.

Earlier in his remarks, the Onido of Ido, Oba Gbolagade Babalola, commended the lawmaker for the initiative, describing it as a timely intervention that would significantly support farmers and boost agricultural production in the constituency.

The monarch urged the beneficiaries to make judicious use of the farm inputs to maximise their productivity and improve their livelihoods.

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Ajimobi’s Legacy Still Guides Us, Oladele Urges Oyo APC Unity

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A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Oyo State and aspirant for the Irepo/Oorelope/Olorunsogo Federal Constituency seat in the 2027 general elections, Hon. Bosun Oladele, has called on members of the party and the wider progressive family in the state to embrace unity in order to preserve and advance the legacy of the late former Governor, Senator Abiola Ajimobi.

Oladele made the appeal on Thursday as political associates, loyalists and admirers marked the remembrance of the former governor, whose administration was widely associated with the popular slogan, “Koseleri.”

In a statement he personally issued,  the federal lawmaker hopeful described Ajimobi as a visionary leader whose passion for development transformed Oyo State and left an enduring footprint in its political history.

According to him, the annual remembrance of the late governor offers an opportunity for progressives to reflect on the ideals, discipline and commitment that defined Ajimobi’s leadership.

“It is that time of the year to remember the passion that once drove the developmental strides of the Pace Setter State, the centre of politics in Nigeria and a state renowned for many firsts,” Oladele said.

He noted that although the former governor had departed, his contributions to governance and public service remain fresh in the minds of many residents and party faithful.

“Oyo State still misses his sharp mind, problem-solving abilities, oratory prowess, focused leadership and developmental initiatives. His style of governance inspired confidence and demonstrated what purposeful leadership could achieve,” he stated.

Oladele stressed that Ajimobi’s legacy should continue to serve as a source of inspiration for members of the APC, urging them to close ranks and work towards a common goal.

“Even though he is gone, his legacy gives the progressive family in Oyo State hope that the future he envisioned for our dear state remains achievable through oneness and unity of purpose.

“I therefore call on all members of the APC and the progressive family at large to join hands, put aside differences and work together towards winning future elections as part of efforts to actualise the developmental aspirations our departed leader had for Oyo State,” he added.

The APC stalwart also prayed for the repose of Ajimobi’s soul and sought divine strength for his family, particularly his widow, Ambassador Florence Ajimobi, as she continues to shoulder public and private responsibilities.

He expressed optimism that Oyo State would once again witness progressive governance driven by visionary leadership, inclusiveness and a shared commitment to the welfare of the people.

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