Nigeria joins global deal to cut cost of HIV prevention drug

The Nigerian government has joined global leaders in announcing a historic price reduction for a revolutionary HIV prevention drug, lenacapavir, at the sidelines of the 80th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

The announcement was made on Thursday during the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI) 2025 Annual Meeting in New York, held on the sidelines of UNGA.

Under the deal, the cost of lenacapavir, a twice-yearly injection proven to be up to 100 per cent effective in preventing HIV infection, will drop from $28,000 to just $40 per person annually.

The breakthrough is expected to make the medicine accessible to millions across Nigeria and in more than 100 low- and middle-income countries.

Nigeria’s stance

Delivering Nigeria’s statement at the event, the Director-General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA), Temitope Ilori, described the development as a major step forward.

Ms Ilori noted that the agreement represents a turning point in expanding access to lifesaving innovation.

“Today marks a milestone in our fight against HIV , in Nigeria and globally. Through this landmark access agreement, we are unlocking affordable access to lenacapavir, a transformational new HIV prevention option that offers longer protection, greater convenience, and renewed hope to millions at risk,” she said.

She stressed that the deal ensures the innovation does not remain a privilege for the few but instead delivers equity and long-lasting impact.

HIV, lenacapavir

HIV is a virus that attacks the body’s immune system, weakening its ability to fight infections and diseases. Without treatment, it can lead to Acquired Immunodeficiency Syndrome (AIDS).

Common early symptoms include fever, fatigue, rash, sore throat and weight loss, though many people may remain asymptomatic for years. According to health experts, timely prevention and treatment are key to halting transmission.

The World Health Organisation (WHO), said HIV remains a major global public health issue.

By the end of 2024, an estimated 40.8 million people were living with HIV globally, with about 65 per cent in the WHO African Region.

Globally, 630,000 people died from HIV-related causes same here, while 1.3 million people contracted HIV, including 120,000 children.

Access to antiretroviral therapy (ART) continues to expand, with 31.6 million people receiving treatment in 2024, up from 30.3 million in 2023.

In Nigeria, the burden remains significant. According to the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), HIV prevalence among people aged 15–49 was estimated at 1.3 per cent in 2023.

The same year, there were about 30,000 HIV-related deaths among people aged 15 and above. Meanwhile, an estimated 1,690,291 people aged 15 and above were receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART).

In July 2025, WHO issued new guidelines recommending injectable lenacapavir, administered twice a year, as an additional pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) option for people at substantial risk of HIV infection.

Global collaboration

The price reduction was achieved through strong collaboration with UNITAID, the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI), Wits RHI, Dr Reddy’s Laboratories Ltd. (DRL), and the Gates Foundation.

The Gates Foundation earlier announced a new partnership with Indian manufacturer Hetero Labs to drive down the cost of lenacapavir and expand access.

Nigeria’s participation, officials added, highlights its leadership role at the UNGA in shaping global health solutions, while reaffirming the government’s commitment to strengthen health systems, expand prevention, and accelerate progress toward ending HIV as a public health threat by 2030.

By Fortune Eromonsele, Premium Times

President Tinubu warns UN: Reform or risk irrelevance

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has delivered a strongly worded reform policy proposal to the United Nations on Wednesday, warning that the global body must embrace sweeping restructurings or face growing irrelevance as world events increasingly bypass its influence.

The president criticised the organisation’s record, pointing to the ongoing human suffering in the Middle East and other regions as “stains on our collective humanity.”

In his address to the UN General Assembly’s 80th session, President Tinubu, who was represented by his deputy, Vice President Kashim Shettima, warned that the UN’s credibility is being undermined by the gulf between its words and its deeds while positioning Nigeria’s economic transformation as a model for developing nations.

“For all our careful diplomatic language, the slow pace of progress on these hardy perennials of the UN General Assembly debate has led some to look away from the multilateral model. Some years ago, I noticed a shift at this gathering: key events were beginning to take place outside this hall, and the most sought-after voices were no longer heads of state,” the president said.

President Tinubu outlined four key reform demands, starting with Nigeria’s call for permanent UN Security Council membership.

“Nigeria must have a permanent seat at the UN Security Council. This should take place as part of a wider process of institutional reform. The United Nations will recover its relevance only when it reflects the world as it is, not as it was,” he stated.

The president emphasised Nigeria’s transformation from “a colony of 20 million people, absent from the tables where decisions about our fate were taken” to “a sovereign nation of over 236 million, projected to be the third most populous country in the world, with one of the youngest and most dynamic populations on earth.”

President Tinubu also expressed deep frustration with the pace of international progress on critical issues, from nuclear disarmament to Security Council reform.

“When we speak of nuclear disarmament, the proliferation of small weapons, Security Council reform, fair access to trade and finance, and the conflicts and human suffering across the world, we must recognise the truth. These are stains on our collective humanity,” he stated.

Taking a direct stance on the Palestinian issue, the president declared: “We say, without stuttering and without doubt, that a two-state solution remains the most dignified path to lasting peace for the people of Palestine.”

He added: “The people of Palestine are not collateral damage in a civilisation searching for order. They are human beings, equal in worth, entitled to the same freedoms and dignities that the rest of us take for granted.”

Speaking further, President Tinubu proposed radical reforms to the global financial system, calling for new mechanisms to address the sovereign debt crisis plaguing developing nations.

“I am calling for a new and binding mechanism to manage sovereign debt, a sort of International Court of Justice for money, that will allow emerging economies to escape the economic straitjacket of primary production of unprocessed exports,” he said.

He emphasised the need for “urgent action to promote debt relief – not as an act of charity but as a clear path to the peace and prosperity that benefits us all.”

The president positioned Africa’s natural resources as central to future global stability, emphasising the need for African control over strategic minerals.

“Africa – and I must include Nigeria – has in abundance the critical minerals that will drive the technologies of the future,” President Tinubu said. “Investment in exploration, development and processing of these minerals, in Africa, will diversify supply to the international market, reduce tensions between major economies and help shape the architecture for peace and prosperity.”

He insisted that countries producing strategic minerals must “benefit fairly from those minerals – in terms of investment, partnership, local processing and jobs. When we export raw materials, as we have been doing, tension, inequality, and instability fester.”

On the new information frontiers, President Tinubu called for closing the digital divide, referencing the UN Secretary-General’s vision that “‘A.I.’ must stand for ‘Africa Included’.”

“I am calling for a new dialogue, to ensure we promote the best of the opportunities that are arising – and promote the level of access that allows emerging economies more quickly, to close a wealth and knowledge gap that is in no one’s interest,” he stated.

Addressing Nigeria’s ongoing economic transformation, President Tinubu acknowledged the difficult reality facing his citizens but said that Nigeria’s economic reforms represent a model for resilience.

“The government has taken difficult but necessary steps to restructure our economy and remove distortions, including subsidies and currency controls that benefited the few at the expense of the many,” he explained.

“I believe in the power of the market to transform. Our task is to enable and facilitate, and to trust in the ingenuity and enterprise of the people. But the process of transition is difficult,” the President said.

On Nigeria’s fight against terrorism and violent extremism, President Tinubu outlined a philosophy that prioritises ideological victory over military conquest.

“From this long and difficult struggle with violent extremism, one truth stands clear: military tactics may win battles measured in months and years, but in wars that span generations, it is values and ideas that deliver the ultimate victory,” he stated.

President Tinubu call for renewed commitment to multilateralism, while reaffirming “Nigeria’s commitment to peace, to development, to unity, to multilateralism, and to the defence of human rights is beyond compromise. For none of us is safe until all of us are safe.”

“We must make real change, change that works, and change that is seen to work. If we fail, the direction of travel is already predictable,” he warned.

Premium Times

Japan scraps JICA ‘Africa Hometown’ agreement with Nigeria

The Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) has terminated the “JICA Africa Hometown” initiative following widespread protests in Japan, over concerns that the programme would trigger increased immigration from Africa.

The Japanese Foreign Ministry is scrapping the initiative after struggling to contain the slew of misinformation that had spread after the Nigerian government falsely announced that the agreement would create a new visa category that allowed Africans to relocate to Japan.

The “hometown” agreement, announced by JICA at an African development conference in Yokohama in August, aims to strengthen Japan’s ties with Nigeria and other African countries.

It was intended to foster exchanges between four municipalities in Japan and four countries in Africa.

The Japanese cities and their respective partner nations were: Kisarazu in Chiba Prefecture with Nigeria; Nagai in Yamagata Prefecture with Tanzania; Sanjo in Niigata Prefecture with Ghana; and Imabari in Ehime Prefecture with Mozambique.

However, President Bola Tinubu’s administration announced that the new partnership with Japan would create a special visa for Nigerians to work in Japan.

This announcement, however, created a flurry of misinformation online that eventually led to waves of protests in Japan, with citizens calling for the programme’s cancellation.

According to the Japan Times, the president of the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), Akihiko Tanaka, on Thursday said, “Taking the situation seriously, upon consultations with stakeholders, JICA has decided to cancel the ‘Africa Hometown Initiative.”

“We emphasize, however, that promoting international exchange, including with Africa, remains an important priority, and pledge to continue supporting such efforts despite withdrawing the Africa hometown project.”

By Beloved John, Premium Times

Nigeria police targeting whistleblower who exposed payroll fraud

The Coalition for Whistleblowers Protection and Press Freedom (CWPPF) has called on the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, to provide immediate protection for Katsina-based entrepreneur and whistleblower, Mubarak Bello, who was recently arrested by the state police command.

Mr Bello, who until recently ran a business centre inside the Katsina police headquarters, was arrested on 13 September after a night patrol intercepted his Toyota Corolla.

Police in Katsina State alleged that they found a locally made rifle, live cartridges and a fake police identity card in his possession.

He is currently facing accusations of impersonation, unlawful possession of firearms and holding a forged police ID.

However, CWPPF, a coalition of more than 30 media and civil society organisations, insists Mr Bello’s arrest is linked to his role in exposing a ghost workers’ scheme within the Katsina police command.

According to the coalition, Mr Bello had raised alarms about a payroll racket dating back to 2017, when he alleged that officers attempted to co-opt him and an associate into the scheme.

In 2021, Mr Bello reportedly petitioned several anti-corruption bodies, including the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation and the Police Service Commission (PSC), providing documents he claimed revealed widespread fraud.

The International Centre for Investigative Reporting (ICIR) recently reported that Mr Bello’s arrest came in retaliation for his whistleblowing activities.

CWPPF echoed this concern in its petition dated 18 September, warning that Mr Bello’s life and that of his family are under “serious and imminent threat.”

“The Nigerian Police Force should conduct a prompt, thorough and diligent investigation into the alleged payroll fraud scheme, as well as the allegations against him,” the coalition wrote in a petition submitted to IGP Egbetokun, Attorney-General Lateef Fagbemi, and his counterpart in Katsina State.

The petition, signed by the Deputy Director, Journalism Programme at the Centre for Journalism Innovation and Development (CJID), Busola Ajibola, on behalf of the coalition, was also submitted to the National Human Rights Commission and ICPC.

The acknowledgement copies were received, the coalition told PREMIUM TIMES, explaining that “the copy meant for the Committee on Public Petitions is pending because the National Assembly is on recess.”

The coalition further demanded protection for Mr Bello and his family until the matter is resolved.

By Yakubu Mohammed, Premium Times

Nigeria cuts lending rate for first time in five years

Nigeria’s central bank cut its main lending rate for the first time in five years, following the easing of inflation that had driven repeated hikes from early 2024.

The bank cut the benchmark rate by 50 basis points to 27% this week, citing “sustained disinflation, improved output growth, stable exchange rate and robust external reserves.” Nigeria’s inflation rate fell to 20.12% in August, the fifth consecutive decline this year. The bank also based the rate cut on its expectation that inflation will continue to slow for the rest of 2025, though it said it was monitoring “the risk posed by excess liquidity” from government spending.

Nigeria’s economy grew by 4.23% year-on-year in the second quarter, according to government data also released this week. Its rate cut comes as part of a wider easing of monetary policy across many of Africa’s biggest economies: central banks in Ghana, Egypt, and South Africa have taken similar steps, with cooling inflation cited in each case.

By Alexander Onukwue, SEMAFOR