Health
World AIDS Day: WHO Issues New Guidance On HIV Self-Testing
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
In advance of World AIDS Day, WHO has released new guidelines on HIV self-testing to improve access to and uptake of HIV diagnosis.
According to a new WHO progress report lack of an HIV diagnosis is a major obstacle to implementing the Organization’s recommendation that everyone with HIV should be offered antiretroviral therapy (ART).
The report reveals that more than 18 million people with HIV are currently taking ART, and a similar number is still unable to access treatment, the majority of which are unaware of their HIV positive status. Today, 40% of all people with HIV (over 14 million) remain unaware of their status. Many of these are people at higher risk of HIV infection who often find it difficult to access existing testing services.
“Millions of people with HIV are still missing out on life-saving treatment, which can also prevent HIV transmission to others,” said Dr Margaret Chan, WHO Director-General. “HIV self-testing should open the door for many more people to know their HIV status and find out how to get treatment and access prevention services.”
HIV self-testing means people can use oral fluid or blood- finger-pricks to discover their status in a private and convenient setting. Results are ready within 20 minutes or less. Those with positive results are advised to seek confirmatory tests at health clinics. WHO recommends they receive information and links to counselling as well as rapid referral to prevention, treatment and care services.
HIV self-testing is a way to reach more people with undiagnosed HIV and represents a step forward to empower individuals, diagnose people earlier before they become sick, bring services closer to where people live, and create demand for HIV testing. This is particularly important for those people facing barriers to accessing existing services.
Between 2005 and 2015 the proportion of people with HIV learning of their status increased from 12% to 60% globally. This increase in HIV testing uptake worldwide has led to more than 80% of all people diagnosed with HIV receiving ART.
Who misses out on HIV testing?
HIV testing coverage remains low among various population groups. For example, global coverage rates for all HIV testing, prevention, and treatment are lower among men than women.
Men account for only 30% of people who have tested for HIV. As a result, men with HIV are less likely to be diagnosed and put on antiretroviral treatment and are more likely to die of HIV-related causes than women.
But some women miss out too. Adolescent girls and young women in East and Southern Africa experience infection rates up to eight times higher than among their male peers. Fewer than one in every five girls (15–19 years of age) are aware of their HIV status.
Testing also remains low among “key populations” and their partners – particularly men who have sex with men, sex workers, transgender people, people who inject drugs, and people in prisons – who comprise approximately 44% of the 1.9 million new adult HIV infections that occur each year.
Up to 70 % of partners of people with HIV are also HIV positive. Many of those partners are not currently getting tested. The new WHO guidelines recommend ways to help HIV positive people notify their partners about their status, and also encourage them to get tested.
“By offering HIV self-testing, we can empower people to find out their own HIV status and also to notify their partners and encourage them to get tested as well,” said Dr Gottfried Hirnschall, Director of WHO’s Department of HIV. “This should lead to more people knowing their status and being able to act upon it. Self-testing will be particularly relevant for those people who may find it difficult to access testing in clinical settings and might prefer self-testing as their method of choice.”
Self-testing has been shown to nearly double the frequency of HIV testing among men who have sex with men, and recent studies in Kenya found that male partners of pregnant women had twice the uptake of HIV testing when offered self-testing compared with standard testing.
Twenty three countries currently have national policies that support HIV self-testing. Many other countries are developing policies, but wide-scale implementation of HIV self-testing remains limited. WHO supports free distribution of HIV self-test kits and other approaches that allow self-test kits to be bought at affordable prices. WHO is also working to reduce costs further to increase access. The new guidance aims to help countries scale up implementation.
WHO is supporting three countries in southern Africa which have started large scale implementation of self-testing through the UNITAID-funded STAR project and many more countries are considering this innovative approach to reaching those who are being left behind.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Dr Obi Adigwe has been appointed as the pioneer National Coordinator of the National Health Technology and Data Analytics Office (NHTDAO).
The body was created by the Ministry of Health under the approval of President Bola Tinubu.
NHTDAO will be domiciled in the Office of the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, a statement on Friday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, stated.
The agency will serve as a meta-level national platform for coordinating the country’s digital-health agenda. It will reinforce, not replace, the existing statutory functions of relevant departments and agencies, it was emphasised.
The organisation will also harmonise and empower the public and private institutions across the health system, set the standards that connect them, and operationalise the National Digital Health Architecture, approved by the National Council on Health in November 2025.
It was stated that President Tinubu expects NHTDAO to accelerate Nigeria’s transition to a secure, interoperable and data-driven health system that improves outcomes for all citizens.
Mr Adigwe, as Director General of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development, has leveraged science to catalyse interventions in artificial intelligence, translational research, and technology transfer.
He coordinated major projects, including the ¥300m Nanotechnology grant and the AFREXIMBank grant for Africa’s first API Training Facility. He led the roadmap development that underpinned an €18 million EU grant, the largest in Africa for the thematic area. During the last pandemic, Adigwe globally showcased African science by undertaking the world’s first analysis to debunk claims about the Covid Organics preparation.
The Office’s Steering Committee, which provides strategic direction and oversight, comprises:
- Professor Muhammad Ali Pate, Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare (Co-chair)
- Mr Olaniyi Yusuf, Chairman of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (Co-chair)
- Dr Iziaq Adekunle Salako, Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare (Alternate Co-chair)
- Ms Kachollom Daju, Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare
- Mr Idris Alubankudi Saliu, Special Adviser to the President on Technology and Digital Economy
- Dr Muntaqa Umar-Sadiq, National Coordinator, SWAp Coordination Office
- Dr Abdu Mukhtar, National Coordinator, Presidential Initiative to Unlock Healthcare Value Chain
- Dr Muyi Aina, Executive Director, National Primary Health Care Development Agency
- Dr Kelechi Ohiri, Director General, National Health Insurance Authority
- Director, Health Planning, Research and Statistics, Ministry of Health and Social Welfare
- National Information Technology Development Agency Representative
- Six representatives of the State Commissioners of Health, one from each of the six geopolitical zones
- Pharm Hamza Buhari, Stakeholder representing Industry and Community.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Lagos State government has kicked off an initiative to ensure that every newborn is screened for Sickle Cell Disease within 48 to 72 hours after birth using a simple heel-prick test.
It was gathered that babies identified as being at risk will immediately be placed on preventive care while awaiting confirmatory testing.
The Head of the Haematology Department at the Alimosho General Hospital, Dr Olubukola Orolu, revealed that an estimated 150,000 babies are born annually with Sickle Cell Disease in Nigeria, giving the country one of the highest SCD burdens globally.
She, however, applauded the Lagos State Government and the Clinton Health Access Initiative (CHAI) for introducing the state-wide newborn screening programme, describing it as a major step towards reducing childhood deaths associated with the disease.
The commencement of this scheme coincides with the 2026 World Sickle Cell Day, themed Young Voices Rising for Sickle Cell Disease – Closing the Survival Gap: Equity in Sickle Cell Disease.
It highlights the importance of listening to the experiences and aspirations of young people living with Sickle Cell Disease.
Mrs Orolu noted that SCD warriors are increasingly breaking barriers as advocates, leaders, students and change-makers, adding that their voices have continued to reshape the narrative through advocacy for equitable, patient-centred healthcare, self-care and experience sharing.
She, therefore, called for equal access to quality healthcare, survival opportunities and dignity for everyone living with Sickle Cell Disease.
Also commenting, the chief executive of Alimosho General Hospital, Dr Akinyele Akinlade, described Sickle Cell Disease as an inherited blood disorder that is not contagious, noting that individuals living with the condition are more susceptible to infections.
He advised SCD warriors to stay well hydrated, avoid stress, and protect themselves from extreme cold or heat, as these are common triggers of sickle cell crises, adding that these preventive measures can significantly reduce the frequency and severity of crises.
One of the participants, Ms Borokini Zainab, an SCD warrior and student nurse, expressed appreciation to the organisers for the enlightenment programme.
Sharing her personal journey, she spoke about the challenges of balancing recurrent pain crises with her academic pursuits and personal life. Despite moments of frustration, she encouraged fellow warriors not to lose hope.
“Don’t let sickle cell put you down. Be encouraged from within. Don’t let your dreams be shattered because of this,” she said, adding that her personal experience with Sickle Cell Disease inspired her to pursue a career in nursing so she could support others living with the condition.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
A 12-week health-tech incubation programme tailored for early-stage founders in Nigeria has been introduced by an innovation and venture-building platform, Evon Labs.
This initiative, known as HealthX Catalyst, will help participants to create scalable, investable solutions for Africa’s urgent healthcare issues.
The programme is underway, with 12 selected founders nearing the final weeks of intensive incubation, ending with a Demo Day on June 24, 2026, at the UNDP innovation centre in Lagos, where the small business owners will present their solutions to an audience of investors, healthcare leaders, development organisations, and technology partners.
The initiative selects early-stage healthcare founders and immerses them in a structured 12-week development process. Throughout this period, participants receive personalised and group mentorship from seasoned professionals across the healthcare, technology, and business sectors.
They also receive structured support for startup development, including refining business models, developing value propositions, and validating markets.
Additionally, participants gain access to a network of healthcare practitioners, sector experts, and industry leaders, along with targeted investment-readiness assistance to prepare them to engage with investors and strategic partners after the programme.
The result is a cohort of founders who move through the programme not simply with a refined pitch, but with a validated business model, a stronger professional network, and a clear pathway to growth.
To accelerate the most promising solutions beyond the programme, monetary grants will be awarded to the top three founders to support product development, pilot implementation, market validation, and early-stage scaling.
It was learned that HealthX Catalyst was developed in response to a structural gap in the African health-tech ecosystem.
Across the continent, a growing number of entrepreneurs are building solutions to healthcare problems from access and diagnostics to service delivery and health data infrastructure. Yet many of these early-stage ideas fail to progress beyond concept, not for lack of vision, but for lack of structured support: mentorship, startup development frameworks, industry access, and early-stage funding pathways. HealthX Catalyst was built to provide exactly that.
“Africa does not have a shortage of healthcare innovators. What it has lacked is the infrastructure to turn its ideas into sustainable businesses. HealthX Catalyst is that infrastructure, a serious, structured programme designed to take founders from early-stage ideas to investable startups.
“What we are seeing from this first cohort is exactly what we set out to create: founders who are not just building products, but building businesses that can scale and create lasting impact,” the founder of Evon Labs, Ms Isioma Udeozo, said of the unveiling of HealthX Catalyst.
The partners of the programme are the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Odua Investment Company Limited (OICL), Washington University of St Louis, Missouri, Lagos State Employment Trust Fund (LSETF), and Brooks Insights.
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