A coalition of Nigerian civil society organisations has condemned a proposal contained in the UN80 reform initiative to “sunset” the Joint United Nations Programme on HIV/AIDS (UNAIDS) by the end of 2026.
In a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja, the Coalition of Community Networks and Civil Society Organisations in Nigeria described the move as “ill-timed” and a “betrayal” of millions of people living with and affected by HIV.
On 18 September, in the report “Shifting Paradigms: United to Deliver” under the UN80 Initiative, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres formally proposed it.
“We plan to sunset UNAIDS by the end of 2026. This would entail mainstreaming capacity and expertise into relevant entities of the UN development system in 2027,” Mr Guterres said.
UNAIDS was established in 1996 to coordinate global HIV/AIDS efforts and promote community-centred responses. The agency has been instrumental in reducing AIDS-related deaths globally by almost 70 per cent since 2004.
Nigeria, which has the second-largest HIV epidemic in the world with approximately two million people living with the virus, continues to depend on UNAIDS’ leadership.
The coalition noted that the UN’s proposal could reverse gains made in reducing HIV infections and deaths over the past decades.
“The proposal to dismantle UNAIDS is not only ill-advised but dangerously shortsighted and a betrayal of communities living with and affected by HIV,” the statement read.
“AIDS is not over, and the global AIDS response has been upset in recent times that it requires deliberate and concerted efforts to achieve the SDG target of ending AIDS by 2030.”
They stressed that UNAIDS has already been guiding countries toward inclusive and sustainable national responses, prioritising community leadership and domestic funding.
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