Some Nigerians Turn to Faith Healers As HIV Aid Dries Up
Cuts to U.S.-funded PEPFAR programs in Nigeria have left HIV patients without access to free antiretroviral therapy. Consequently, many are turning to unproven 'Islamic medicine' and traditional healers, risking their health due to financial desperation.
Why it matters
This illustrates the severe public health consequences of international aid fluctuations on vulnerable populations in developing nations.
After US aid cuts disrupted free HIV treatment, some Nigerian patients turn to unproven 'cures'.
Aisha* once relied on free antiretroviral therapy (ART) from a clinic in Maiduguri, north-eastern Nigeria, funded through the US President's Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) programme.
The treatment kept the HIV in her body suppressed.
That changed when US President Donald Trump ordered a halt to PEPFAR funding in January 2025.
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"When I went to the facility and was told the drugs were no longer available for free, my heart sank because I couldn't afford to pay for them out of pocket," Aisha* told SciDev.Net.
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