By Emmanuel Nyatsikor
Dzemeni (V/R), July 25, GNA – Mr Samuel Yao Atidzah, the Executive Director of GOSANET Foundation, has called for intensified community efforts to prevent new HIV infections.
He also called for improved access to HIV prevention, testing, treatment and care services across the South Dayi district.
Mr Atidzah made the call during one of the Foundation’s HIV community engagements at Dzemeni in the South Dayi district of the Volta region.
He said the 2025 Volta region HIV Fact Sheet released by the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC), showed that South Dayi district was one of the areas with relatively high HIV burden in the region.
He noted that the district had an adult HIV prevalence of 1.85 per cent, an estimated 846 people living with HIV, and among them there were 52 new cases and an overall Anti-Retroviral Therapy (ART) coverage of 57.7 per cent for all ages.
He said the Fact Sheet mentioned that 18,387 people were living with HIV in the Volta region.
The Executive Director noted that 713 new HIV infections were also recorded in the year, as shown in the Sheet.
Again, the regional HIV prevalence among adults aged between 14 to 49 years stood at 1.41 per cent, he said.
Mr Atidzah continued that the fact sheet had shown that 75 per cent of the people living with the disease were aware of their status, whilst 63.3 per cent of adults living with the disease were receiving anti-retroviral therapy (ART).
He stated that these figures highlighted the need for sustained community engagement, especially among other vulnerable populations, to reduce new infections and ensure that more people got to know their HIV status and access treatment early.
The Executive Director explained that under the GHANET OVP Project, GOSANET Foundation continued to implement comprehensive HIV prevention interventions in the South Dayi district.
He mentioned the interventions as community sensitization, HIV self-testing promotion, distribution of HIV self-test kits and condoms and behaviour change communication.
The others Mr Atidzah said were referrals of clients to health facilities for confirmatory testing and treatment and advocacy to eliminate stigma and discrimination against people living with HIV.
He commended the GAC, particularly Madam Mary Naa Ashley Anyormi, the Volta Regional Technical Coordinator, for making available the regional HIV data that enabled implementing partners and stakeholders to design evidence-based interventions that responded to the needs of communities.
Mr Atidzah urged traditional authorities, religious leaders, fisherfolk associations, youth groups, community volunteers, civil society organizations, the media and development partners to work collaboratively to increase HIV awareness, encourage regular testing, promote safer sex practices and support people living with HIV.
“Ending HIV as a public health threat requires collective responsibility and sustained investment in prevention programmes, especially vulnerable populations,” he stated.
The Executive Director noted that GOSANET Foundation remained committed to working with the Ghana HIV and AIDS Network, GAC, Ghana Health Service, district stakeholders and community members to ensure that everybody has access to accurate HIV information, prevention services, testing, treatment and care.
“Together we can reduce new HIV infections and build healthier communities,” he said.
GNA
Edited by Maxwell Awumah/ Christabel Addo