The Federal Executive Council (FEC) has approved N8.6 billion for the construction of vaccine laboratory, text kits for HIV/AIDS and procurement of medical equipment.
The Minister of Health, Dr Osagie Ehanire, announced this when he briefed State House correspondents on the outcome of the Council meeting chaired by President Muhammadu Buhari in Abuja on Wednesday.
According to the minister, N3.06 billion of the amount will be spent on the construction of vaccine laboratory, N1.2 billion for laboratory equipment while N4.3 billion will be used in procuring text kits for HIV/AIDS and Syphilis.
He said: “The Ministry of Health presented three memos, which were all approved. One of them was for the procurement of test kits for HIV/AIDS.
“As you all know, Nigeria has succeeded in driving down the HIV prevalence from 3 per cent to 1.3 per cent.”
He said with the nationality indicator and the impact survey carried out recently, the government was ready to conduct more tests, particularly of mothers who may be carrying HIV that could be passed on to their unborn children.
