Benue ranks second as Nigeria records 20,838 new HIV cases in Q1 2026

Nigeria documented 20,838 fresh HIV infections between January and March 2026, with Lagos and Benue emerging as the most affected states, data from the National Data Repository has shown.

Lagos recorded the highest figure at 2,298 cases, while Benue followed with 1,949. Akwa Ibom ranked third with 1,159 cases, slightly ahead of Rivers with 1,137 and Anambra with 1,013.

In the northern region, Kaduna posted 842 cases, while Kano reported 476. States within the mid-range category included Delta with 803 cases, Oyo 763, Ogun 751, Plateau 662, Imo 640, and Nasarawa 615.

The Federal Capital Territory accounted for 579 infections. Abia and Edo recorded 527 and 512 cases respectively, while Ebonyi had 253, Gombe 252, and Borno 238.

At the lower end of the chart, Ekiti recorded 129 cases, Sokoto 110, while Yobe had the least with 100 cases.

Meanwhile, the Federal Government recently disclosed that it has earmarked $346 million in co-financing for 2026 to strengthen programmes targeting HIV, tuberculosis and malaria.

The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, made this known during the national rollout of Lenacapavir, a long-acting injectable used for HIV prevention.

“In the context of this major bilateral funder, the co-financing for 2026 is almost 346 million dollars additional.

“Mr President has already directed the Budget Office of the Federation to ensure that it is captured in the 2026 budget,” Pate said.

He noted that the funds would cater to critical areas such as procurement of medical commodities, laboratory surveillance, reagents, expansion of primary healthcare, and financial protection for citizens.

“That means that some of the commodity costs, the laboratory surveillance costs, the reagents, primary health care, expansion of financial protection should be included,” he said.

According to Pate, the initiative signals Nigeria’s growing focus on domestic funding as international health support continues to decline.

“The global space is changing right in front of our eyes. Financing has become limited globally and constrained in many countries, including Nigeria.

“While we have had tremendous success over the last 25 years thanks to global partnerships, the headwinds we are facing in terms of the changing global landscape force us to think differently,” he said.

He further stressed the importance of adopting innovative and cost-effective approaches, adding that new interventions such as Lenacapavir would support ongoing efforts to curb HIV, tuberculosis and malaria in the country.