HIV positive mothers on antiretroviral drug can exclusively breast feed their babies for a period of six months without passing the virus to the children, the Director General of the National Agency for the Control of AIDS, Professor John Idoko has said.

Professor Idoko said a recent research done in Botswana, revealed that HIV positive mothers when put on the antiretroviral drug can breast feed their babies without fear of transmitting the virus to their newly born.

The NACA boss who was speaking at the launching of the week-long celebration of the world AIDS day with the theme, "Universal Access and Human Rights', Closing the Wide Gap in Preventing Mother To Child Transmission(PMTCT)", said emphasis would be laid on reversing the high rate of transmission from mother to child.

He explained that it was previously not advisable for HIV positive mothers to breast feed their babies because there was a 50% chance that they will affect their children.

'most donor agencies especially UNICEF has advocated that a HIV positive mother should breast feed because most of them cannot afford infant formula, nor are social amenities available to assist the mothers' sustain the life of her baby'.

'so the babies either die of cholera, malnutrition or one of these child killer disease prominent in the rural environment, Idoko said, so we opt for breastfeeding to save the life of their children'.

"Prevention is key if we are going to meet the goals of the MDG, if we are going to meet the goals that this country has set up for itself with the seven point agenda and the Vision 20:20:20, we know that we really have to reverse HIV and the only way to do that is to key on prevention and PMTCT is one out of several components about prevention. One area of prevention, which we believe we can get 100 percent success is in the PMTCT", he said.

According to him, significant progress has been made in the fight against AIDS since 'the price of drug has dropped and the drugs have become more potent, less toxic and more convenient and patients are adhering better'.

Idoko reiterated that worldwide, the epidemic had orphaned 15.2 million and Nigeria accounted for 2.5 million of them, but that the common goal is to "halt and preserve the spread of HIV by 2015", which is only achievable through universal access to comprehensive prevention, treatment, care and support programmes.

National Programme Officer UNAIDS, Dr. Modupe Oluwole said the joint UN agencies working towards achieving universal access to HIV prevention are planning to buy infant formula's for HIV positive mothers to ease the financial burden.

Another planned intervention by the UNAIDS, according to her, is to ensure that all infants exposed to HIV would have access to infant diagnosis and infant feeding options in all those focal states and also ensure that "40 percent of HIV infected children in these states and the FCT have access to ARV drugs and treatment for opportunistic infections".

National Coordinator, Network of People Living With HIV/AIDS in Nigeria (NEPWHAN), Edward Ogeyi appealed for the provision of free infant formula to HIV positive mothers free of charge to protect their children from being infected with the virus.