Nigerian Newsday

By Halima Aliyu Omaku

Educational materials worth thousands of naira were distributed free to Orphans and Vulnerable Children (OVC) whose parents died of the Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) in Giza Development Area of Nasarawa State.

The Parish Action Committee on AIDS (PACA) distributed the materials penultimate week at the premises of St. Anthony Catholic Church in Kadarko town of the development area.

The items included materials for school uniforms, exercise books, textbooks, pencils and biros, as well as mathematical sets.

In a welcome address at the occasion, the PACA chairman, Mr. Joseph T. Ashiker, said that the committee was formed in 2003 to provide care and support for people living with the HIV virus and children who lost their parents through AIDS.

Mr. Ashiker said PACA has identified about 500 orphans and vulnerable children in the state whose educational needs were being catered for by the committee.

He said that PACA has so far spent a total of N250,000 in paying the school fees for seventy of the OVCs.

Mr. Ashiker said such children were being cared for by PACA irrespective of their tribe and religious background.

He said PACA’s main concern was to secure the future of all affected children with a view to making them better and responsible members of the society.

According to Mr. Ashiker, "the committee also provides nutritional supplements to such children, and also tries to ensure that their social and political rights are protected".

He called on the general public to assist PACA and other similar organizations in the fight against the scourge of HIV/AIDS.

Others who spoke at the occasion included the priest of the church and the representatives of the Catholic Relief Agency (CRA), which provides moral and material support to people living with the virus.

The highlight of the occasion was free HIV test for the general public.