Nigeria is set to celebrate this year’s International Condom Day (ICD), with a call on African nations and sub-national governments in Nigeria to sustain the national response to HIV infection.
In a statement in Lokoja, on Wednesday, the AIDS Healthcare Foundation in Nigeria says governments and other stakeholders in the HIV prevention campaign need to promote condom use continually to reduce the HIV infection rate among young Nigerians amid the increasing rate of sexually transmitted infections (STIs) worldwide.
Senior Advocacy and Marketing Manager, AHF Nigeria, Mr Steve Aborishade, says the NGO will host International Condom Day (ICD) celebrations in Akwa and Anambra states on February 12th, 2026, while AHF Healthcare Foundation holds an event on sex education and the imperative of condom use among students at the University of Abuja, Faculty of Media and Communication Studies, to celebrate International Condom Day on February 13th, which is the international ‘Lovers Day’, known as ‘Valentine’s Day’ in Nigeria.
The events will feature free condom distribution, condom awareness activities, and HIV testing.
“Condoms are cheap, effective, and proven, yet too often people can’t get them or face stigma for using them.
“Governments must step up domestic health financing and remove barriers to access, ensuring condoms are freely and widely available,” said Martin Matabishi, AHF Africa Bureau Chief.
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Dr Echey Ijezie, AHF Nigeria Country Programme Director (CPD), emphasised the importance of condom use: “Using condoms is the best way and most cost-effective method to prevent HIV, other STIs, and unplanned pregnancies.”
The ICD celebration aims to raise awareness about the importance of condom use in preventing HIV and STIs and to promote access to condoms and HIV testing services.
Since 2011, AHF Nigeria has conducted over 2.5 million HIV tests, distributed 27 million condoms, and trained over 2,058 government health workers.
The organisation operates 153 comprehensive and decentralised HIV clinics across seven states.
AIDS Healthcare Foundation (AHF) is a global non-profit organisation providing cutting-edge medicine and advocacy to more than 2.8 million people in 50 countries worldwide in Africa, the Americas, the Asia/Pacific Region, and Europe.
The AHF is currently the largest non-profit provider of HIV/AIDS medical care in the world.