If the government does not take immediate action, many young children, the elderly, and vulnerable individuals living with HIV may lose their lives due to the U.S. government’s decision to halt funding for the treatment globally.
This was revealed by Haruna Makafin Dala, the Secretary of the SafeLife Sustainable and Counseling Initiative, an organization dedicated to supporting children and elderly individuals living with HIV/AIDS in Kano.
Makafi said this during an exclusive interview with DAILY POST on Friday.
Makafi who is also a recipient of free HIV medication and an advocate for treatment adherence, stated that since Donald Trump’s decision to halt funding, many patients relying on free antiretroviral drugs have been thrown into confusion.
“I feel deep sympathy for young children, women, and elderly individuals who depend entirely on these free medications. My greatest fear is that people living with HIV may start seeking alternatives on their own,” he said.
He further explained, “If people are left to find treatment by themselves, it will lead to the very crisis we have been trying to prevent—the rise of fake traditional medicine practitioners who falsely claim to have a cure for HIV. But in reality, these fake remedies only contribute to the further spread of the disease rather than controlling it.”
He emphasized the need for the government to crack down on fraudulent traditional healers who exploit people living with the virus by giving them ineffective treatments.
These so-called “remedies” often mislead patients into believing they are cured, allowing them to engage in relationships and marriages without proper precautions—only for the illness to return later, sometimes too late for effective intervention.
“Many people living with HIV already feel stigmatized and discriminated against by society. My fear is that if this frustration escalates, some individuals may resort to intentionally spreading the virus within the community,” he warned.
Another person living with the disease, Bashir Ismail, said, “The information we are receiving is that free testing and medication for new patients have been suspended, which is a major threat.
“Right now, the medicine is running out of stock and we don’t know what those living with the disease will do, although I don’t know the exact quantity of the medicine.”
According to a recent survey conducted by the SafeLife Sustainable and Counseling Initiative as part of World Aids Day, the number of children contracting HIV in Kano State is on the rise, while assistance for orphaned children is decreasing.
Currently, the organization reports that it is caring for over 2,000 orphaned children whose parents have died due to HIV-related complications.
DAILY POST reports that U.S. president, Donald Trump signed an executive order to revoke funding for the global fight against HIV/AIDS. Experts warn that this move could significantly undermine progress in combating the disease worldwide.
In response, the World Health Organization (WHO) issued a statement strongly condemning the decision, saying “such measures, if prolonged, could lead to rise in new infections and deaths, reversing decades of progress and potentially taking the world back to the 1980s and 1990s when millions died of HIV every year globally, including many in the U.S.,” WHO warned.
The suspension of funding under the U.S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has caused serious concern among global health bodies.
PEPFAR has been a cornerstone of the international response to HIV/AIDS for over 20 years. The WHO emphasized that any pause in its funding would have a direct impact on millions of lives that depend on the continuous supply of safe and effective antiretroviral treatment.
PEPFAR operates in over 50 countries worldwide and has saved more than 26 million lives since its inception.
Currently, it provides HIV treatment to over 20 million people globally, including 566,000 children under the age of 15.
