WHO:Nigeria, Others To Run Out Of HIV Treatment Supply

The World Health Organization (WHO) on Monday listed Nigeria among eight other countries likely to run out of supply of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) treatments soon.

This development followed the President Donald Trump administration’s decision to pause United States foreign aid (USAID) has substantially disrupted the supply of HIV treatments in the countries.

Amid Trump’s decision, efforts to tackle HIV, polio, malaria, and tuberculosis have been impacted by the U.S. foreign aid pause implemented by President Donald Trump shortly after he took office in January.

The global health agency said that Nigeria, Haiti, Kenya, Lesotho, South Sudan, Burkina Faso, Mali, and Ukraine could exhaust their supply of HIV treatments in the coming months, according to a report by Reuters quoting WHO’s Director-General, Tedros Ghebreyesus.

The WHO-coordinated Global Measles and Rubella Laboratory Network, with over 700 sites worldwide, also faces imminent shutdown, the agency said. This comes at a time when measles is making a comeback in the US

Funding shortages could also force 80% of WHO-supported essential healthcare services in Afghanistan to close, the agency said in a separate statement.

As of March 4, 167 health facilities had shut down due to funding shortages, and without urgent intervention, over 220 more facilities could close by June.

The United States’ plans to exit the WHO have also forced the UN agency, which typically receives about a fifth of its overall annual funding from the U.S., to freeze hiring and initiate budget cuts.

The WHO said on Monday that it plans to cut its funding target for emergency operations to $872 million from $1.2 billion in the 2026-2027 budget period.