HIV-Stigma in Nigeria: Review of Research Studies, Policies, and Programmes

Abstract

Nigeria has about 3.8 million people living with HIV, the second largest globally. Stigma and discrimination are major barriers to testing, treatment uptake, and adherence. In this review, we synthesized information on research studies, policies, and programmes related to HIV-stigma in Nigeria. This was with a view to identify critical areas that research and programmes must address in order to accelerate the progress towards zero (new infections, discrimination, and death) target by year 2030. Existing studies were mostly devoted to stigma assessment using varieties of measures. Research, policies, and programmes in the past two decades have made very useful contributions to stigma reduction. We identified the need for a consistent, valid, and objective measure of stigma at different levels of the HIV response. Nigeria does not lack relevant policies; what needs to be strengthened are design, planning, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of context-specific stigma reduction programmes.

Health-related quality of life of HIV patients with and without tuberculosis registered in a Tertiary Hospital in Port Harcourt, Nigeria

“…On the other hand, the lower mean score in the social relationship domain could be attributed to persisting pockets of social stigma and discrimination, including self-stigmatization, which is a predominant feature among PLWHA. Stigma and discrimination have been shown to be major barriers to treatment uptake and adherence, and can significantly reduce patient's QOL [28]. In a Northern Ethiopian study, high perceived stigma was strongly associated with poor psychological quality of life [29].…”

A Qualitative Study Exploring Harmful Cultural Practices and HIV Stigma in North Central Nigeria

“…The problem of harmful cultural practices is a psychosocial issue that promotes HIV-related stigma, especially among women, which increases vulnerability to HIV infection (Anugwom and Anugwom, 2016;Odimegwu, Akinyemi, & Alabi, 2017;Stockton, Giger, & Nyblade, 2018). Also, it was indicated that HIV stigma leads to discrimination and stigmatization of PLWHA by members of the society (Famoroti, Fernandes, & Chima, 2013;Srithanaviboonchai, Chariyalertsak, Nontarak, Taneepanichskul, & Aekplakorn, 2017).…”

“…Culture, therefore, defines HIV as a women problem (Girum et al, 2018). Odimegwu et al (2017) indicated that there is a high rate of HIV infection among women in Nigeria. Reasons for the HIV prevalence is based on the harmful cultural practices, including female genital mutilation (Klein, Helzner, Shayowitz, Kohlhoff, & Smith-norowitz, 2018;Koski & Heymann, 2017), postpartum sexual abstinence during breastfeeding (Dev et al, 2019;Shabangu & Madiba, 2019), sexual intercourse during menstruation (Di Guardo et al, 2019;Laganà et al, 2017), gender inequality (Jayachandran, 2014), and tribal marks and scarification (Breuner, Levine, & AAP The Committee on Adolescence, 2017).…”

Stigmatization of People Living with HIV/AIDS in Ndokwa West Local Government Area of Delta State, Nigeria

“…According to the Nigerian HIV and AIDS Indicator and Impact Survey (NAIIS) report 2018, the current national prevalence of HIV is estimated at 1.4% (15-49 years), with an estimated 1.9 million PLWHA in Nigeria. This report borders across age and indicates 12% of PLWHA are between the ages of 0-14 years while 75% are between 15-49 years and 13% are 50 years and above in Nigeria [16,17]. Adolescents (10-19 years) account for 8% of persons living with HIV.…”