I remember during my IT days at UBTH, a pregnant woman walked in with her three-year-old daughter. It was time for the child’s medication, and the little girl, born with the virus, looked up and said, ‘Oh Mummy, I’m tired of this medication.’ The mother tried to convince her, and something in me broke.
That raw encounter became the catalyst that pushed Jecinta Ken-Jabin away from haematology and straight into the tough, mission-critical world of HIV prevention. Today, the Biomedical Scientist and President of Complete Women’s Charity Organisation has built an empowering ecosystem across Nigeria, the UK, Ghana and beyond, one where science, faith and community converge to protect mothers, educate families, and ensure children start life unburdened.
In this interview with Rita Oyiboka, she talks about the hard-won milestones, the operational realities behind supporting hundreds of HIV-positive mothers, the personal risks she has taken in the line of duty, including the terrifying moment she almost became a carrier herself, and why her work remains non-negotiable in a country still battling stigma, misinformation and systemic gaps.
Can we meet you, ma?
My name is Jecinta Ken-Jabin. I’m from Ughelli North Local Government, Agbarha, but I grew up in Sapele.
What do you do?
I’m a Biomedical Scientist, graduated from the Delta State University (DELSU), Abraka. We do carry out medical laboratory tests for people with HIV and AIDS. That’s my speciality. I specialise in taking care of pregnant women with HIV and AIDS, preventing mother-to-child transmission of the virus. I’m also the President of Complete Women’s Charity Organisation. It’s a Christian women’s association that is into charity.
What drew you into working towards the HIV field?
It started during my I.T. days at the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, where we went for our industrial training to grow more into the areas where we chose as our speciality. I got attracted to the HIV department when a pregnant woman came in with her three-year-old daughter, and she, of course, was HIV positive.
I have seen a lot of positive people, men and women, but what really attracted me was the little girl. She came with her three-year-old daughter, and it was time, because HIV has a specific time for their medication. The patients with HIV have their medication at a particular time of the day. So if they take the medication by 10 a.m., they have to take it by 10 p.m.
So, coincidentally, it was time for the medication. The girl was born with the virus, and the mother was about to give the little girl the medication, and the girl was like, “Oh Mummy, I’m tired of this medication. Why? Why am I to take this medication every day? I’m tired.” And the mum was trying to convince her to take the tablet.
So something in me was like, “Oh my God.” So from this little age, this girl has been taking this medication, and she has to be on it for the rest of her life. So I started thinking to myself, “What if there is something I can do to help women give birth to children without the virus?”
Every child deserves to be born free and healthy. It’s not their fault that their parents got sick. They shouldn’t be infected because their parents were infected. So that changed my entire decision. I wanted to specialise in haematology, blood grouping and genotype, but that little girl motivated me to change everything. I wanted to reach out to children and mothers and help prevent mother-to-child transmission. So that was how my journey into the HIV and AIDS ward started.
How long have you been invested in this endeavour?
Since 2009.
You’ve mentioned your affinity for HIV causes, helping to prevent mother-to-child transmission. How does that lead to the launch of the Complete Women Charity Organisation?
Complete Women was born out of a strong conviction. I was tired of seeing women healed physically but broken emotionally or spiritually. They were strong, but they were not medically uninformed. I knew we needed a holistic approach. Faith gives women hope. Science gives them accurate knowledge. And community gives them belonging.
Over the years, blending these three has become our foundation, because a woman cannot be truly whole if any part of her life is neglected.
You were inspired to embark on your HIV/AIDS endeavour due to seeing that mother and child interaction. What have you done so far in that course?
We have created an awareness programme that we do quarterly. We go out into the communities, health centres. We do it every antenatal, like a programme where the entire village hosts a community programme. But aside from that, we visit health centres and hospitals every week to teach them and tell them, let them know that the virus can actually be avoided from infecting the child.
I’m also a writer. Apart from being a Biomedical Scientist, I write novels because I discovered that people like reading novels rather than reading books. So I create a story into a book, a pamphlet also, and share it among these pregnant women, where they read, and they get the awareness that their child can actually be born HIV-free.
What myths about HIV do you encounter the most, and how do you dispel them?
Some believe that HIV is a death sentence. Some believe it’s a punishment. And in some villages, some believe it’s the gods punishing them. And so many people believe that you can just identify HIV by appearance.
For example, December 1 was World AIDS Day, and we had our women all over the country, and even in different countries, you know, going out for awareness. There was one particular man I stopped just to talk to him, and immediately, I mentioned HIV, and he started running. I was surprised. I’m like, “Wait, I don’t have HIV.” He said, “No, no, no, you can’t touch me.” I said, “You can’t just transmit it by touching me or talking to me.”
You know, these are some of the myths we face. We address this myth through storytelling, community dialogue and simple science. We explain the treatment, the success, the virus suppression, and the pandemic prevention in languages that they will understand.
I have sat down with HIV-positive people. I have eaten with them. I lie down with them. And just to show the ones that are HIV-negative that it’s not transferable like that. At the end of it, I’ll call them back. I say, “Okay, let’s take the test together.” I show them how a virus can be positive and how I can be negative, and we do the test together. Education reduces fear, and understanding kills stigma faster than argument.
How much is social media a weapon to amplify the message of HIV care and discrimination?
I’m a TikToker, and by the grace of God, I have over 30,000 followers. I go live, and I teach on HIV and AIDS.
Social media removes blockages. So I use it to normalise conversation around HIV, debunk myths and challenge discrimination with empathy. I’m a very good storyteller. I share information and create safe spaces where people can learn without shame.
And because of social media, a lot of people can create an identity or a profile that is not even them, so they feel at ease to talk to a lot of people who leave positive comments on my TikTok livestream to say positive, “I am inspired to come and talk because of the way you’re talking.”
What are some of the challenges you have faced so far?
Stigma has been the hardest barrier, especially when advocating in conservative spaces. There were moments of isolation and pushback, but my faith reminded me that purpose always attracts resistance. And my community has held me when I was becoming weak, when strength ran low.
How do you reconcile the power of faith with the reality that treatment may be a lifelong necessity?
Faith is a personal thing. Before you can think of saying you want to pray with someone, the person has to believe in it. So even though we preach faith to these people, we still encourage them to take their medication. There’s a saying that faith without works won’t give you the required result. So, we encourage faith, we encourage the medication side by side.
It’s not just something we just say, “Okay, go, you’re healed, don’t take the medication again.” No. Some people’s level of growth in Christ will not carry it. So we encourage it side by side until you finally see that it’s gone.
We strongly believe, especially we in this HIV sector, that by 2030, HIV will be completely gone, and we will have discovered a cure. But for now, take your medication. Keep up with the prayer. It goes together.
While we move towards a world where HIV is eradicated, what tips would you give to carriers to be able to live a fulfilling life?
First of all, I would say, I will give practical, empowering tips. I’ve said: prioritise your health, not fear. Take the antiretroviral drugs as prescribed. Don’t miss it for any reason.
Protect your mental and emotional well-being, because the way you think can affect you in general. I remember a few years ago, 2012, before I got married, I was attending to a full-blown AIDS patient, this person has AIDS, not HIV, so there is little or nothing the drugs can do for that person. And as I was trying to collect the blood sample, he dragged his hand, and the needle pierced me. Not just pierced, it cut me deep.
I was scared. I was terrified. But I spoke to my matron, and immediately I was placed, and I did everything I was supposed to do. Of course, ran my hand through running tap, you know, did the test, and I was placed on HIV medication for one month. My state, my physical state, deteriorated, not because I had the virus, but because of my mental health. Because of the way I was thinking: “Oh, I’ve carried the virus.”
So I was on the medication, but I became so thin. I was having all the HIV symptoms in one month. I don’t drive, sorry, I’m speaking, so in one month, I became so lean, I couldn’t eat. Like, I was going from church to church, and I didn’t even have the virus. I was talking to myself: “I’m not yet married, so this is how my love for helping people with HIV has finally landed me in this.” So my mental health was bruised.
But at the end of the one month, one month and two weeks, I went for my test again, and it came out negative. And in one week, I was myself.
So, mental health, living with HIV, can come with anxiety or shame due to the stigma, not the virus. So, protect your mental health. Seek counselling, peer support groups, and people who talk about it with you. Yes, never hide it. HIV is a medical condition. It’s not a moral failure.
Then number three, build healthy relationships. Choose safety disclosures. Tell only trusted people who are mature, intelligent, and practice open communication with your partner.
Know your rights. People with HIV have the right to love. They have the right to marriage. They have the right to a family. So know your rights.
Eat well and stay active. Maintain a balanced diet, exercise, avoid smoking, and do anything that will affect your health. Then you plan for the future. Set goals, pursue your dreams, invest, build, and create a legacy. Your life does not pause because of HIV.
You need to stay informed and empowered. Learn accurate, up-to-date information. Stop living in the past. HIV-negative men can get married to HIV-positive women and not get infected, and their children will not be infected.
Surround yourself with support. Choose community, faith groups, and advocacy organisations. If you have a supportive family, that’s very good. Stay with them. Family is valid.
Then stand against stigma at your own pace. You do not owe anyone your story. Some people choose to live privately. Others become advocates. But your choices are valid.
What about people who want to start initiatives like you, who are thinking of ways to start, maybe might not have resources, or just need inspiration to kick off what they feel is their purpose to help others?
I would say start with what you have, not what you lack. You don’t need money to help people; you need presence. You can listen to someone who feels unseen. You share accurate information. It doesn’t have to be about money. You connect with people who feel that they have been rejected. You encourage somebody who I want to give up. Impact begins with reliability, not a budget. Motivation comes after action.
So, if you are waiting to feel motivated, you might never start. Instead of waiting for that motivation, do one small thing every week. Visit somebody. Talk with them. Momentum creates that motivation, not the other way around. Even when you feel tired, you can still do something meaningful.
Money does not matter. You don’t need clarity. You don’t need strength. Just the willingness to start is what you need.
What are some of your goals for your foundation?
Complete Women Charity Organisation started in 2018. In the coming years, I see Complete Women as a global hope for women’s health education, research, collaboration, and policy advocacy. I envision structured empowerment centres, expanded maternity HIV programmes, a big hospital, and generational mentorship. The global community can join by partnering, funding grassroots work, amplifying our message, and believing that women are whole.
You know, we have big dreams. People always tell me I have dreams that are bigger than I am, than myself. I’m very small in size, but my dreams are very large. I see Complete Women as a world-renowned organisation reaching out to the less privileged, orphans, widows, widowers, prisons, you know, health advocacy, well-known all over the world. Doing charity, free services. We’re going to be having the biggest hospitals in the world for free maternal-to-child prevention and pregnancy.
