A Cambridge consultant has taken up a top HIV post in Nigeria.

Dr Sani Aliyu, consultant in microbiology and infectious diseases at Cambridge University Hospitals (CUH), has been appointed to the post of director-general of the national agency for the control of AIDS.

He will be responsible for reorganising the delivery of HIV services in the West African country.

Dr Aliyu said: “This is a really exciting opportunity for me to contribute my quota to the battle against this disease and to arrest the current challenging state of HIV services in the country.

“I am grateful to CUH for making it possible for me to accept this post.

“It is further testimony of the commitment of the Trust in improving the delivery of health care services in developing countries through the exchange of skilled manpower and resources.

“I look forward to coming back to CUH older and hopefully wiser!”

With an estimated three-million infected people, HIV is a major cause of mortality in Nigeria and remains a huge burden to the country’s fledgling health service.

The issue of transmission from mother to child has been particularly worrying for the international community with the country contributing about one in every three babies born with HIV in the world.

Dr Aliyu obtained his medical degree in Nigeria at the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

In 2001, he joined Addenbrooke’s Hospital to undertake speciality training in microbiology and infectious diseases.

After a brief spell as a consultant microbiologist in Birmingham, he returned to Addenbrooke’s in 2008 as the first joint consultant in microbiology and infectious diseases.