Aburi (E/R), Feb 11, GNA – The International Child Development Programme (ICDP), a non-profit organization, has held an inception meeting on HIV Prevention and Reproductive Health Education Project in Aburi in the Akuapim South Municipality of the Eastern Region.
The project, sponsored by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), is scheduled to last for 12 months, beginning January to December this year.
The meeting brought together 35 stakeholders in the Municipality, including the Municipal Coordinating Director, Municipal Health Director, representatives from the Municipal Education Service, local Traditional Council and Christian and Muslim representatives, Assembly members and others.
Addressing participants, Ms Joyce Larnyo, Country Director, International Child Development Programme (ICDP), noted that the COVID-19 pandemic had taken the centre stage of all health issues, including HIV and reproductive health.
This has led to a reduction in addressing the spread of HIV in the country, causing an increase in the number of persons infected over the past years after the COVID-19 surge, she said.
Ms Larnyo said the meeting, which was also being held in Ga West Municipality, would roll out the HIV Prevention and Reproductive Health Education project in the Akuapim South Municipality to educate, especially the youth on HIV.
Nana Adjoa Afriyie Bonsu, the Project Coordinator for ICDP, said the main objective of the project was, “to support the Government in achieving the SDG4 through its Education Strategic Plan/ESP- (2018-2030) Basic Education Policy Objective (B.E) 2.3”.
Focusing on improved learning environments, including health and sanitation, child protection, and guidance and counselling in basic school, she noted.
Ms Bonsu explained that the project would encourage child advocacy and equip the youth in the Junior and Senior High School levels within two local target communities to be advocates of the project.
She highlighted the formation of peer educators group, formation and training of youth clubs, radio discussions, community durbars as some of the measures to help implement the project in Pokrom and Berekusu communities.
However, the project does not seek complete eradication of the spread of HIV in the Municipality within the set duration but to help minimize it, said Ms Bonsu.
The Municipal Director of the Ghana Health Service (GHS), Ms Emily Ofman, said teenage pregnancy and HIV in the Municipality was on the increase.
She recalled that the Municipality recorded 184 (13.1 per cent) teenage pregnancies in 2020 and 210 (14.2 percent) teenage pregnancies in 2021, indicating a 1.1 per cent increase between the two years.
Ms Ofman, again noted that out of the 1, 245 persons tested for HIV in 2021, 53 (4.6 per cent) persons turned to be positive and 54 (2.9 per cent) persons out of 1,863 persons tested for HIV in 2020 were positive.
She said the project was timely since it would help the GHS to educate the public on HIV in the area despite the COVID-19 pandemic.
Mr Emmanuel Degraft-Johnson, the Assemblymember for Kitase, proposed a collaboration between Municipal GHS and the Municipal Education Service to teach Reproductive Health Education in Upper Primary than in JHS.
He said learners at that level of education, in this season, were sexually active and must be educated before getting to the JHS level to prevent unwanted pregnancies and the spread of HIV as well.
Mr De-graft-Johnson indicated the readiness of the Assembly to support the implementation of the project.
GNA