ACADEMIA Letters
Disability inclusiveness in HIV/AIDS policies in Nigeria:
Overview and Recommendations
Miracle Adesina, Slum and Rural Health Initiative
Ifeanyi Adigwe, Slum and Rural Health Initiative
Isaac Olufadewa, Slum and Rural Health Initiative
Ruth Oladele, Slum and Rural Health Initiative
Abstract
It is a common belief in Nigeria that that persons with disabilities are sexually inactive, so they
cannot be infected with HIV/AIDS. They are therefore often neglected in HIV and reproduc-
tive health rights policies and never on the priority list regarding sex education that teaches
safe sex practices. The letter discusses global legislation and policies that support the inclu-
siveness of persons with disabilities in HIV/AIDS and provides actionable recommendations.
Introduction
Disability inclusion has been a tropical developmental issue in the last decade.[1,2] The rati-
fcation of disability inclusion by 172 countries in the UN convention in October 2017 stated
that ‘people with disabilities should be included in all global development and health initia-
tives and this was further supported in the sustainable development goals (SDG 4).[3]
More and more people are afected by disability every year, and they are usually one of
the most vulnerable to variety of illness. Evidence suggests that persons with disabilities
are at higher of contracting HIV/AIDS than the general population.[1-3] Most of them live
in extreme poverty and are sufer sexual violence and abuse in silence, coupled with poor
Academia Letters, September 2021
Corresponding Author: Miracle Adesina, miracleadesina5@gmail.com
Citation: Adesina, M., Adigwe, I., Olufadewa, I., Oladele, R. (2021). Disability inclusiveness in HIV/AIDS
policies in Nigeria: Overview and Recommendations. Academia Letters, Article 3546.
https://doi.org/10.20935/AL3546.
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©2021 by the authors — Open Access — Distributed under CC BY 4.0