Chevron Nigeria Limited, CNL, operator of the NNPC/CNL Joint Venture , JV, has launched a $1.4 million, two-year project tagged PROMOT (II) targeted at preventing the transmission of HIV from mothers to their newborn babies.
The community-based Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission project (PROMOT II) comes on the heels of PROMOT (I), a four-year project, which was implemented in Bayelsa State between September 2012 and March, this year and to which Chevron committed $5.3 million, the Nation reports.
Both phases of the project are implemented in partnership with Pact, an international non-governmental organisation with active programming in Nigeria for more than a decade.
The General Manager, Policy, Government & Public Affairs Deji Haastrup stated that PROMOT (II) project was officially launched on July 12, 2016 by Governor Seriake Dickson of Bayelsa State, who was represented by Chief David Serena Dokubo-Spiff the Secretary to the Bayelsa State Government (SSG), at Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.
The Governor, who hailed Chevron for providing additional funds for the extension of PROMOT for another two years, said: “Chevron is a good company and I commend the firm for providing additional fund for the extension of PROMOT for another two years, in spite of the harsh economic climate.”
Dokubo-Spiff noted that PROMOT (I) was a great success, as it contributed to the reduction of Bayelsa State’s HIV prevalence rates from 9.1 per cent in 2010 to 3.8 per cent by the end of the project’s third year in 2015.
The Chairman Managing Director, Clay Neff, explained that the PROMOT (II) project is part of the company’s social investment efforts in the Niger Delta.
He said: “Chevron invests in programmes aimed at improving access to healthcare to support the communities where we operate. Working with partners globally and at local levels, we dedicate our capabilities, resources and people to support initiatives that build local capacity and deliver real, lasting gains in the fight against devastating diseases – particularly HIV/AIDS.”
The PROMOT (II) project, being implemented by Pact, will focus on promoting health care-seeking behaviour among women of reproductive age (15–49) – including those living with HIV- to utilise antenatal care (ANC) and Prevention of Mother-To-Child Transmission (PMTCT) services in three Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Bayelsa State.
