The West Africa Centre for Public Health and Development (WACPHD), the National Agency for the Control of AIDS (NACA) and the Oyo State Government have commenced preparations for a fresh HIV surveillance survey to generate updated data for strengthening prevention and treatment interventions among key populations.
The 2026 Integrated Biological and Behavioural Surveillance Survey (IBBSS), being implemented simultaneously in 12 states across the country, is expected to provide current behavioural and biological data on HIV and help identify gaps in prevention, care and treatment services.
The collaboration was highlighted in Ibadan during the training of field and technical personnel for the Oyo State component of the survey at the Development Support Centre (DSC), Iyaganku.
The Chairman of the Oyo State Agency for the Control of AIDS (OYSACA), Dr. Gbola Adetunji, described the exercise as a critical public health initiative capable of providing the evidence required to understand emerging HIV trends, identify service gaps and guide resource allocation.
Adetunji said the survey would generate information on the socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge, beliefs, risk behaviours, access to HIV prevention and care services, HIV status awareness and treatment uptake among female sex workers (FSW), men who have sex with men (MSM) and people who inject drugs (PWID).
He noted that findings from previous IBBSS rounds had indicated a significant HIV burden among key populations, making updated data necessary to assess the impact of existing interventions and shape future programmes.
He called for stronger community participation, stressing that key population communities should be regarded as partners in the HIV response rather than merely respondents.
The OYSACA chairman also urged field and technical teams to ensure that the exercise was conducted ethically and professionally, while appealing to stakeholders and community representatives to support the field teams.
Representing the Director-General of NACA, Dr. Temitope Ilori, Mr. Joseph Terry described the IBBSS as a national government survey whose protocol had been reviewed by the IBBSS Technical Working Group and approved by the Federal Ministry of Health.
He urged implementing teams to adhere strictly to the approved protocol and ensure proper documentation of all activities.
Terry said the survey was supported by the Global Fund and therefore subject to stringent financial and accountability requirements, noting that proper documentation would be critical to the release of funds tied to implementation milestones.
He lauded the collaboration between OYSACA and WACPHD, urging the two organisations to work closely to produce credible findings capable of supporting sound health policy and decision-making.
The WACPHD representative, Mr Chukwebuka Ejeckam, said the organisation was providing technical support for the implementation of the 2026 IBBSS in the 12 participating states.
According to him, the 2020 IBBSS recorded HIV prevalence of 15.5 per cent among female sex workers and 10.9 per cent among people who inject drugs, underscoring the need for fresh data to determine whether investments in HIV interventions were producing the desired results.
Ejeckam disclosed that about 40 field personnel had been recruited and were undergoing training in Oyo State, comprising 31 personnel for the behavioural component and nine for the biological and serological component, including laboratory personnel and counsellors.
He said the training would be followed by hotspot validation and field activities expected to run for about two months in September and October, after which data analysis, report writing and dissemination would commence.
The Oyo State implementation coordinator, Mr. Aduluju Ayodeji, said the field teams would cover the three selected key population typologies, appealing for the cooperation of community members and eligible participants.
He assured participants that confidentiality would be strictly maintained and that all information collected would be handled responsibly and securely.
The Acting Coordinating Director of OYSACA, Mrs Fausat Okanlawon, described the survey as more than a routine exercise, saying its findings would serve as a critical compass for Nigeria’s HIV response among key populations.
Also speaking, the representative of the Key Population Secretariat, Mr. Ajani Kayode, appreciated OYSACA for its continued support to key population communities in the state and expressed confidence in the capacity of personnel selected for the exercise.
He pledged the Secretariat’s support for the successful implementation of the survey.
