Conceptualized to support Nigeria in achieving HIV epidemic control, the PEARL project is a 5-year comprehensive HIV program funded by PEPFAR through the CDC. CIHP designs and scales proven and innovative strategies aimed at reaching populations most at risk of being infected with HIV.

Along the continuum of care which includes testing, linkage to care and treatment, provision of treatment, retention of clients in care, and treatment support, the UNAIDS 95:95:95 targets are currently being achieved across our supported states through the Priority Population centered program, Orphan and Vulnerable Children (OVC) program, Pediatric focused program, Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission (PMTCT) program, TB/HIV co-infection focused program, Advanced HIV Disease (AHD) Management program, Treatment Support, and Enhanced Adherence Counselling (EAC) Program, Operation Triple Zero (OTZ) and so on. 

The goal is to ensure that 95% of people living with HIV know their HIV status; 95% of people who know their status are put on treatment, and 95% of people on treatment are virally suppressed.

Currently, in its final year, PEARL implementation began in Gombe, Kaduna, and the Kogi States. To have further strengthened the response of HIV epidemic control, PEPFAR/CDC transited its supported comprehensive HIV program in focus LGAs in Lagos State from APIN Public Health Initiatives to CIHP. This granted the opportunity to implement learnings and successes from the first two years of the PEARL project and consolidated the gains of the BRIDGES-PLUS project. Also, it became a great opportunity to scale proven, innovative context-appropriate strategies for enhanced HIV case finding, strengthen retention on ART, and attainment of viral suppression across the program.

As of 2020, with robust program planning and meaningful partnerships fostered to build synergy for the result-oriented HIV interventions, 686,722 persons were newly tested and know their HIV status, while 27,288 newly identified Persons Living with HIV received life-saving antiretroviral medicine continuously to achieve viral suppression in these respective states. The upscale and saturation of ART uptake by CIHP has continued to ensure retention among the general and key population, TB/HIV co-infected patients, pregnant women, adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) & pediatrics, and also the orphaned and vulnerable children (OVC) who constitute about 311,864 in 2020 alone, were served with educational and psychosocial support, skills acquisition and entrepreneurship empowerment, and HIV prevention services. Also for the PEARL intervention, CIHP has worked to strengthen laboratories’ capacity, referral networks, logistics, and quality management systems in all thematic activity domains. Up-to-date knowledge and skills have been inculcated in healthcare workers of facilities and states’ management teams to detect, monitor, and deliver high-quality and integrated HIV services at facility and community levels for patients who need the care.

Despite the odds of COVID-19, which disrupted services during the lockdown, CIHP ensured the sustainability of the PEARL project through innovativeness. We have a collection of over 20 success stories here. Please check the video below on how we navigated the odds of COVID-19 to support the Government of Nigeria in our journey to achieving epidemic control.