Yinka Jegede-Ekpe

Occupation: AIDS Activist
Reebok HR Award: 2004
Birthplace: Ilesa, Osun State, Nigeria

One of Nigeria's most visible AIDS activists, Yinka Jegede-Ekpe advocates for the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS, raises AIDS awareness nationwide, and educates the vulnerable-particularly women-about their risks and their rights. 

While a nursing student in 1997, Yinka developed an oddly persistent rash. The local hospital ran a battery of tests; when she returned for the results, she found the doctors and nurses avoiding her, 'They looked at me as if I were a living corpse,' Yinka says. She soon learned why: 'She was infected with HIV.'

'The media would portray AIDS with a skull, or a skeleton,' Yinka says. 'It made people afraid; they didn't want to be near anyone infected, and that fear made the stigmatization much worse. Some people were chased away by members of their own families or even stoned to death.'

At the same time, denial was helping to spread the epidemic in Nigeria. So despite the risks to her personal safety, Yinka decided to go public with her HIV status in an effort to inspire others to step forward. Her nursing school immediately restricted her activities, the principal tried to expel her, and her fellow students shunned her. Yet Yinka fought for her rights and completed her nursing studies.

Her own experience with discrimination fueled Yinka's desire to fight for the rights of people living with HIV/AIDS (PLWHA). She began by joining with a small group of activists to establish the first PLWHA organization in her country, the AIDS Alliance of Nigeria. Through her vocal advocacy for the rights of PLWHAs, the organization quickly gained a following.

When she found evidence that she had been infected with HIV through the poor hygienic practices of her dentist, Yinka not only demanded that he change his practices, but she also promoted widespread AIDS education. She became a founding member and active participant in several organizations at the forefront of HIV prevention, care, and support efforts in Nigeria.

As a member of Nigeria's National Action Committee on AIDS, Yinka has been active in HIV prevention policies. She toured several Nigerian states to develop an action plan for addressing the needs of PLWHAs. She has also volunteered with several intergovernmental organizations, such as UNICEF, to help deliver their HIV programs. And her work with the Civil Society Consultative Group on HIV/AIDS in Nigeria and other organizations encouraged the federal government and several state governments to adopt the principle of 'greater involvement of persons living with HIV/AIDS' in their policy making and programs.

While serving as an executive board member of the AIDS Alliance in Nigeria, Yinka saw that women's concerns were not receiving adequate attention and that important issues--such as policies to advocate for drugs to prevent mother-to-child transmission of HIV--were being overlooked. So she established the Nigerian Community of Women Living with HIV/AIDS (NWC+). As executive director of NWC+, Yinka now works to empower women living with HIV/AIDS by teaching them their rights and providing them with gender-specific information about AIDS. She also works to link together support groups of women living with HIV/AIDS across Nigeria and has empowered many to become active advocates for the human rights of women affected by AIDS.

Through this work, Yinka has lent a powerful voice to the large and growing voiceless population of African women living with HIV/AIDS. Of the estimated 28 million HIV-infected people in sub-Saharan Africa, she notes, roughly 58 percent are women and girls. 'Many more African women than men are infected with HIV,' she says. 'Women have a biological vulnerability to HIV, as well as an economic one, and many cultural factors contribute to the high rates of infection among women in Africa. So I started focusing my attention on women, because we are the ones who will be dying at home or caring for people who are sick and dying of AIDS.'

Today, Yinka lives in Lagos with her husband and daughter.

Books

'The books opened my eyes to the cultural diversity that exists in my people.'   

1. Things Fall Apart by Chinua Achebe

2. Igbo Olodumare by D.O. Fagunwa

3. Any detective novel! 

Songs

'It's very hard to choose my favorite songs because I love all kinds of music with messages ranging from soul, jazz to hip-hop. But I will still choose the following for now:'

1. We are the World by USA for Africa

2. Heal the World by Michael Jackson

3. Brown Skin by India Arie              

Musicians      

'This is so hard as I am a music lover!'

1. Lágbájá in Nigeria

2. India Arie

3. Alicia Keys   

Question: If you were to create a 'toolbox' of things you need to create positive change, what would go in your toolbox?

Yinka's Answer: To create a tool box, I will need my grandmother's chest because it's full of wisdom that can lead me to the right path in making decisions.

On December 10, 1948, the United Nations adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR).  Created with input from many nations, this document still presents a vision of a world in which the rights of all human beings are honored.  It has become the foundation for advocates of human rights around the world. 

The human rights work Yinka Jegede-Ekpe has done with WOMEN'S RIGHTS relates most to Article 3 of the UDHR:

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ARTICLE 3: Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of person.

Learn more about the Universal Declaration of Human Rights

Nigeria

Unless otherwise noted, all facts and figures are taken directly from the CIA World Factbook 2006.*

POPULATION:
131,859,731 (note: estimates for this country explicitly take into account the effects of excess mortality due to AIDS; this can result in lower life expectancy, higher infant mortality and death rates, lower population and growth rates, and changes in the distribution of population by age and sex than would otherwise be expected.) (July 2006 est.)

MEDIAN AGE:
Total: 18.7 years
Male: 18.7 years
Female: 18.6 years (2006 est.)

HIV/AIDS ADULT PREVALENCE RATE:
5.4% (2003 est.)

LITERACY RATES:
Total population: 68%
Male: 75.7%
Female: 60.6% (2003 est.)

INFANT MORTALITY:
Total: 97.14 deaths/1,000 live births
Male: 104.05 deaths/1,000 live births
Female: 90.02 deaths/1,000 live births (2006 est.)   
Life expectancy: avg. 47.08 years

POPULATION DENSITY:
About 144.7 people/sq. km

ACCESS TO CLEAN WATER:
60% 'using improved drinking water sources'.**

MAIN INDUSTRIES:
Crude oil, coal; palm oil, peanuts; skins, textiles, cement and other construction materials

OFFICIAL LANGUAGE(S):
English (official), Hausa, Yoruba, Igbo (Ibo), Fulani

RELIGION(S):
Muslim 50%, Christian 40%, indigenous beliefs 10%.

ARTS/CULTURAL:
According to the official government website, Nollywood is Nigeria's cinema and filmmaking center.  Cultural events include the Lagos boat regatta, puppet festivals, and equestrian competitions.  With 250 ethnic groups, there are many different dances, festivals, and customs.***

POPULAR SPORTS/PASTIMES:
The 'Super Eagles' is the popular team of Nigeria's most popular sport: soccer.  Track and field, wrestling, and tennis also enjoy wide participation.****

CLIMATE/LANDSCAPE/GENERAL GEOGRAPHY:
Climate varies; equatorial in south, tropical in center, arid in north.

Landscape/Geography: southern lowlands merge into central hills and plateaus; mountains in southeast, and plains in north.

GOVERNMENT STRUCTURE:
Nigeria is composed of 36 states and one territory under President Olusegun Obasanjo (since 1999).  There is an executive, legislative, and judicial branch set up much like an American system except that the president, the senators, and the house representatives all serve four-year terms with the possibility of re-election.  Nigeria has a Supreme Court and Federal Court of Appeals.  Independence Day from Britain was October 1, 1960.

OTHER KEY ITEMS (ex. Food, landmarks, key historical facts):
Nigeria is Africa's most populated country.  Under Obansanjo the country is beginning to diversify its economy from oil, which includes cutting wages to curb inflation and decreasing the public sector size.

HOW NIGERIA COMPARES WITH OTHER AFRICAN COUNTRIES: WORLD FACTBOOK FIGURES (prevalence rate defined as 15-49 living with AIDS):
Nigeria's AIDS/HIV prevalence rate is 5.4%.  It was difficult to find a continental average for HIV contraction rates, but the highest rates are found in Swaziland (38.8%) and Botswana (37.3%).*
Note:  According to 'Journalists Againsts AIDS-Nigeria,' the Lagos State AIDS Control Agency (LSACA) has launched an AIDS prevention initiative to halve the transmission rate by 50% by 2010. (http://www.nigeria-aids.org/eforum/msgRead.cfm?ID=5943)
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* 'Nigeria.'  The CIA World Factbook.  Last Modified 29 Jun. 2006, Last Accessed 5 July 2006.  (http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/ni.html)
** 'At A Glance: Nigeria.' UNICEF.  Figure Last Modified 2002, Last Accessed 5 July 2006. (http://www.unicef.org/infobycountry/nigeria_statistics.html)
*** 'Entertainment: Nigeria the Beautiful.' Nigeria Direct: The Official Information Gateway of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.  Copyright 2005, Last Accessed 5 July, 2006. (http://www.nigeria.gov.ng/Entertainment.aspx)
**** 'Nigeria: the Good Old Sport.'  Nigeria Direct: The Official Information Gateway of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.  Copyright 2005, Last Accessed 5 July, 2006. (http://www.nigeria.gov.ng/Sport.aspx)"