By Fatima Mohammed-Lawal
The Kwara State Aids Control Agency (KWASACA) has warned against Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) and other harmful cultural practices that predispose to the spread of HIV/AIDs.
The Executive Secretary of the KWASACA, Dr Alabi Seleem, made the warning while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Bieleshin, in Asa Local Government Area of Kwara.
The programme which is titled, Bieleshin HIV Intervention is tagged: “Towards HIV/AIDs Free Kwara by 2030”.
Seleem who is also the Project Manager of the Agency said beyond FGM, there is need to look at ourselves as a community, as a people, adding that we need to look at our culture and do away with harmful practices to our health and well-being.
According to him, there is a tight relationship between people’s structural, cultural, and religious beliefs and that cultural preponderance predisposes people’s actions and behaviour.
He explained that the Agency had been gathering data on the community, which informed the community-outreach and intervention.
“We have come with a package of prevention messages because we have realized that there is need for us to equip the indigenous people of this community and its environs with the necessary information on the know as how to protect themselves from contracting HIV virus.
“Secondly, and beyond that, we have had partners who have worked in this place over several months and they have given us very rich data from this area.
We want to ascertain the veracity of the data that we are promising our policy decisions on.
“We want to ascertain the veracity of the data that we are promising our policy decisions on,” he said.
Seleem explained that the Agency’s interventions is split into two strategically thinking or in strategic terms; “how to further get more positive people from this community that we are going to link to care.
“There are two technical approaches I want to utilize in getting that a general population testing amongst the people to identify them randomly in different communities, in deeper located communities and settlements within these whole local government”.
He explained further that those who had already been identified will be monitored and look at their family members sexual partners network systems that relate to them and identifying more of them.
According to him, the Agency looks at health more as an integrated platform, including leveraging on the Tuberculosis (TB) system.
“So identifying those who are HIV positive, those who have tuberculosis, because we know how associated these both disease conditions are.
“Beyond HIV, beyond tuberculosis, we are talking non communicable diseases like hypertension, we are talking malaria, we are talking so many other diseases I can think of,”‘ he said.
Also speaking, Alhaji Razaq Owolabi, the Chairman House Committee on Health and Environment said the interventions are part of strategies of Gov. Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq of Kwara in promotion of the health of the citizenry.
Owolabi explained that the community needed more health facilities, and that the government will ensure more health intervention is brought to the community and its environs.
Speaking on the intervention, the KWASACA Head of Community System, Mr Oyedeji Olufemi, said the campaign was intended to mobilize the community and enlighten them on the need to stop harmful cultural practices that predispose them to contracting HIV/AIDs.
He.emphasised on the need for proactiveness and cooperation in order to end HIV/AIDs by 2030.
In his appreciative remark, the Mogaji of Bieleshin community, Alhaji Saidu Aru commended the Agency for the health intervention.
He also appealed to members of the community to get tested and if found positive to always take their medication promptly.
NAN reports that about 69 people were tested and some people were identified, while the Agency commences the treatment phase.