The National Council on Health (NCH) has approved a policy to lower the age of consent for voluntary HIV testing in Nigeria from 18 to 14 years.
This, followed hours of intense, wide-ranging deliberations at its 66th meeting in Calabar, Cross River.
The debate reflected deep concerns around public health priorities, legal frameworks, adolescent protection, and Nigeria’s high HIV burden, particularly among young people.
Chairing the Council, Prof. Muhammad Ali Pate, Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, on Friday, said the revision was necessary, given the scale of the HIV epidemic among adolescents.
He recalled that in 2014, 380,000 children in Nigeria were living with HIV, and one in three young people aged 15 to 24 newly infected with HIV in 2009 resided in South Africa or Nigeria.
He added that Nigeria had approximately 1.7 million AIDS orphans that same year.
Pate stressed that vulnerable groups, including orphans without parents to consent on their behalf, must not be left behind.
He noted that experiences from South Africa, where adolescents from age 12 could access HIV testing independently, had improved early detection.
“Fourteen is where it hovers here in Nigeria. We’ve crafted a policy that is consistent with our own culture, norms and laws,” he said.
He cited both the Penal Code provision for individuals under 14 and the national law, which sets the age at 18.
He urged the council to seek consensus: “I do not want anyone to walk away thinking they have lost. At the end of the day, we want what is best for Nigeria.”
