YWCA of Nigeria in commemoration of the 2014 World AIDS Day carried out a 3- day information sharing campaign and free voluntary counselling and testing. The event which took place from 1st – 3rd December 2014 was held in collaboration with the Lagos State AIDS Control Agency (LSACA).

The programme was open to the public and featured interactive sessions where questions and answers around HIV, infection, prevention, stigma, and positive living for new infections were actively discussed. Information, education and communication materials carrying the right information in HIV and AIDS were also made available in local languages to serve the different information needs of participants. Referrals were also available for all new infections to enable follow up treatment and care.

Some participants at the event identified the continuous lukewarm attitude of many individuals in the society on the importance of knowing one’s status and actively seeking information on prevention, treatment and care. Recognizing this challenge, Joy Yakubu, General Secretary, YWCA of Nigeria, points out that “There are many instances from the past two days to show that for many people HIV still is a distant reality as such, do not feel information on the virus is needed. This presents a challenge in the commitment to achieve zero new infections – if one does not know about it, how does one adopt lifestyle changes that prevent infection or spread of the virus? It is important for us all, regardless of our current situation to be equipped with the right information on HIV and AIDS”.

Women, young women and girls who took advantage of the benefits of the programme expressed their commitment to sharing information garnered, to their friends, families and members of their communities and looked forward to participating again in such a significant event.

“This exercise offered many participants an opportunity to undertake HIV test for the very first time in their lives. This made the event worthwhile” says Gloria Odunikan, who is the Assistant General Secretary, YWCA of Nigeria.