Health
4,000 Young Women Contract HIV Weekly— Report
By Gideon Ayeni
The AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) Nigeria has expressed deep concern over the alarming rise in new HIV infections among young women, revealing that nearly 4,000 women aged between 15 and 24 become infected every week, with over 3,300 of those cases occurring in sub-Saharan Africa.
In a statement issued ahead of the 2025 International Day of the Girl (IDG), AHF Nigeria’s Advocacy and Marketing Manager, Steve Aborisade, called on governments to ramp up investment in HIV and STI prevention, testing, and treatment. He also emphasized the need for stronger policies that improve access to healthcare, education, and reproductive health services for young girls.
“To mark the International Day of the Girl, AHF Nigeria will host an empowerment event at Community Commercial Secondary School, Ikot Oku Ubo, Uyo, on October 10,” Aborisade said. “The event will focus on menstrual health, leadership, and education, while recognising outstanding ideas from girls and distributing free sanitary pads.”
He added that civil society partners, including CISHAN, CCCRN, and ECEWS, along with representatives from the Akwa Ibom State Ministry of Women Affairs, will also take part in the event.
AHF Nigeria’s Country Programme Director, Dr. Echey Ijezie, further highlighted the challenges facing adolescent girls, such as poor menstrual hygiene, gender-based violence, and lack of access to sexual and reproductive health services.
“Every week, thousands of young girls become infected with HIV because of inequality, poor education, and lack of access to health services,” Ijezie stated. He noted that as of 2023, 1.9 million adolescent girls and young women were living with HIV globally, compared to 1.2 million boys and young men, exposing a glaring gender gap in vulnerability.
The International Day of the Girl, observed annually on October 11, celebrates the achievements of girls worldwide and calls for stronger policies to protect their rights and secure their futures.
The statistics, according to AHF, point to a silent emergency threatening Africa’s next generation of women. While global health efforts have reduced HIV-related deaths, the rate of new infections among young women remains troublingly high — suggesting that prevention and education are lagging behind treatment progress.
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