The Director-General of the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC), Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, has disclosed that approximately 50 Ghanaians contract HIV every day.
This statistic highlights the ongoing challenge of HIV/AIDS in Ghana and emphasizes the need for sustained efforts to prevent new infections, provide treatment, and support those affected.
Speaking at the commemoration of World AIDS Day, Dr. Atuahene emphasized that the daily infection rate is a clear indication that more needs to be done to address the epidemic.
Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, also has revealed that, about 35% of Ghanaians living with HIV are unaware of their status. This underscores the need for increased awareness, education, and testing efforts to combat the spread of HIV/AIDS in Ghana.
Speaking at this year’s World AIDS Day National Durbar Celebration in Accra, Dr. Atuahene said, Ghana has made an appreciable progress in the national response which include a low HIV prevalence which is currently at 1.5% and have also increase access to life-saving prevention, treatment care and support services however, the epidemic curve is still high.
He said “Despite the progress we have made, the epidemic care continues to show a very low rate of decline in both new and HIV infection and AIDS death. t is estimated that 35% of Ghanaians living with HIV, have not tested and don’t know their HIV status. While 55% of them are not on antiretroviral medicines,” Director-General of the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC).
Minister of Parliamentary affairs Hon. Osei Kyei Mensah Bonsu, who spoke on behalf of the president, Nana Addo Dankwa Akuffo-Addo said, The NPP government through the ministry of Health has cleared all containers at Tema port containing vital medications for the treatment of Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV), Tuberculosis (TB), and malaria donated by the Global Fund (GF).
The Minister for Health, Dr Bernard Okoe Boye, urged advocates to prioritise calls for prevention to eliminate HIV/AIDS
“As much as possible, we must invest our energies into prevention so that with time, elimination would be the standard, so that we can be like other countries, the first world countries.”
This year’s celebration is on the theme. “Ending AIDS together”.
