Kenya’s First Lady Rachel Ruto on Thursday, December 4 issued one of the strongest calls yet for Africa to end preventable HIV infections in newborns, telling a gathering of African First Ladies that the continent “cannot afford another generation born with a virus they had no power over.”
“Imagine a newborn in Ghana, born this very morning, healthy, hopeful, full of promise,” she said. “Now imagine that same child carrying a virus they had no power over. This must end. Not in ten years. Not in five. We must end it now.”
Her remarks set the tone at a high-level forum on the triple elimination of HIV, syphilis and hepatitis B, convened by the Organisation of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD) and in partnership with ICASA in Accra, Ghana.
Kenya’s numbers underscore that urgency on tripple elimination. More than 3,700 babies were newly infected with HIV last year, the mother-to-child transmission rate has risen above 9 percent, and Nairobi recorded the highest number of new paediatric infections.
“These numbers are our children,” Mrs Ruto said.
She warned that while scientific tools exist, progress will stall without political will and community mobilisation. Citing Graça Machel, she added: “Preventing HIV in children is not a medical duty; it is a moral responsibility.”
Several First Ladies echoed the urgency. Ghana’s First Lady Lordina Mahama, the host, warned that “numbers remain worrying as children have acquired HIV from something that can be prevented,” adding that the push for elimination requires “political will, community will and society will.”
OAFLAD President and Sierra Leone’s First Lady Fatima Maada Bio stressed deliberate action: “Progress is not accidental; progress is intentional. When OAFLAD rises, we rise with nations.”
Liberia’s First Lady linked the moment to Africa’s historical struggles: “If Africa could unite for independence, Africa can unite for an AIDS-free continent. A mother should never carry the guilt of a system’s failure.”
She reminded delegates that the influence of First Ladies is substantive, not ceremonial: “When African First Ladies speak, the continent listens. Our influence is not symbolic.”
Testimonies highlighted challenges beyond clinical care. Rhoda Coffie, National Secretary of NAP, recounted being stigmatised while in labour. “I was nearly abandoned by healthcare workers,” she said. “All women should receive compassionate care regardless of their status.”
The UNAIDS Executive Director raised concerns over child marriage in West Africa: “Poverty pushes girls into unions they did not choose… When a young girl is married to a man twice her age, it is sexual violence with a marriage certificate.”
She added: “Every child pushed aside is a future doctor, a future engineer, a future activist we decided we don’t need.”
Mrs Ruto highlighted actions she is taking through OAFLAD and in partnership with NASCOP: reducing gender-based violence, preventing teenage pregnancies, lowering new HIV infections among adolescent girls.
She also pointed to recent cultural shifts, including declarations by Kajiado and Narok counties committing to end FGM and child marriage, long-standing contributors to girls’ vulnerability to HIV. “This is a victory for the rights of girls,” she said. “When we protect a girl, we protect a family.”
Dr. Parirenyatwa, President of the Society for AIDS in Africa, reinforced the continental direction: “If you want to end AIDS by 2030, you need to end the triple elimination.”
As the 2030 deadline approaches, Mrs Ruto urged leaders not to confuse progress with victory. “Every child born with HIV reminds us that we must move with greater urgency,” she said. “Let us leave this meeting with a continental pact.”
She issued a rallying call that; “Every mother will be reached. Every child will be protected. Every girl will be strengthened. Every family will be empowered.”
