Utweets
Nigeria was listed by the World Health Organization (WHO) as one of the eight nations with the highest potential for a soon-to-disease supply of HIV.
This is because the Trump administration’s decision to halt U.S. foreign aid “substantially disrupted” the countries’ access to HIV treatments.
According to a report from Reuters that quoted WHO’s Director-General, Tedros Ghebreyesus, Nigeria, Haiti, Kenya, Lesotho, South Sudan, Burkinabe, Mali, and Ukraine, the global health agency warned that their supply of HIV treatments might run out in the upcoming months.
At a press conference, WHO Director-General Ghebreyesus was quoted as saying, “The disruptions to HIV programs could undo 20 years of progress.”
He added that this could result in three million deaths related to HIV and more than 10 million additional HIV cases.
The U.S. foreign aid pause, which was implemented by President Donald Trump shortly after he took office in January, has had an impact on efforts to combat HIV, polio, malaria, and tuberculosis.
Read more about Trump’s vehement opposition to the Capitol Attack Investigators’ pardons.
The WHO-coordinated Global Measles and Rubella Laboratory Network, which has over 700 locations worldwide, is also facing an imminent shutdown, according to the organization. This occurs at a time when measles is returning to the United States.
According to Ghebreyesus, the United States has a responsibility to make sure that any countries that receive direct funding are able to find alternative sources of funding in an orderly and humane manner.
According to a separate statement from the organization, funding problems could also cause 80% of Afghanistan’s essential health care services to shut down.
By the end of March, 167 health facilities had stopped because of short-term funding, and over 220 more could stop without delay by June.
The UN agency, which typically receives about a fifth of its annual funding from the United States, has also been forced to freeze hiring and start budget cuts as a result of its plans to leave…CONTINUE READING>>
