The United States President Donald Trump has ordered the US State Department to stop the disbursement of funds from the President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) for HIV treatments in Africa and developing countries, for at least 90 days.
This development originates from Mr Trump’s executive order on foreign aid, which he signed on his first day in office last Monday. After the order, nearly all U.S. global health funding was halted immediately.
Before now, PEPFAR delivered HIV/AIDS treatment to more than 20.6 million people and has helped save lives and curb the spread of the virus with an annual budget of $6.5 billion.
According to an NPR report, PEPFAR has stopped disbursing funding and is likely to suspend operations for at least three months if an exemption is not made for the program in the coming weeks.
Meanwhile, public health experts fear the new administration, led by Mr Trump, might terminate the program entirely.
Over the years, PEPFAR has contributed over $6 billion to support Nigeria’s national HIV/AIDS response since its inception.
