Nagaland's AIDS Battle: Striving to Reach Global Goals Amid Challenges

Nagaland faces a high HIV prevalence rate significantly above India's national average. Urgent efforts are in place to meet global targets by 2026, involving collaboration across sectors. Despite progress, challenges like rising infections among youth, funding constraints, and misinformation need addressing to combat the epidemic effectively.

Nagaland has emerged as the state with the second-highest adult HIV prevalence in India, according to the India HIV Estimates 2023 report, recording a rate of 1.37%, starkly higher than the national average of 0.21%. Commissioner and Secretary Anoop Khinchi spotlighted the figures during an event at Kisama for World AIDS Day.

Efforts are intensifying in Nagaland to achieve the UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets and Sustainable Development Goal 3. As of October, the state reports an 88% success rate in diagnosing HIV, 79% in treatment, and 98% in viral suppression. Khinchi expressed optimism that Nagaland could meet global targets by 2026, citing the need for a collaborative approach involving governmental and non-governmental organizations.

Meanwhile, stakeholders warned of the epidemic's shift toward a broader 'at-risk' population, emphasizing compassion and widened HIV testing and treatment. Despite significant improvements in national rankings, concerns remain about rising youth infections, funding issues, and misinformation hurdles.

(With inputs from agencies.)