By Dennis Peprah, GNA
Sunyani, (Bono), July 9, GNA – Mr Arnold Sopaal, the Monitoring and Evaluation Officer of the MIHOSO International Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO) has raised concern about the upsurge of new HIV infections and rapid spread of the virus in the Sunyani Municipality.
He could not immediately provide statistics, however, described the spread of the virus as alarmingly high, urging every sexually active person, especially the youth to know their HIV status and consciously protect themselves from contracting the virus.
Mr Sopaal said the MIHOSO in partnership with the Ghana HIV and AIDs Network (GHANET) was undertaking the HIV Self-Testing (HIVST) project to help bring the spread of the virus under control.
Under the project, he added that the foundation and its partner were distributing oral-quick and blood-based HIV self-testing kits to the vulnerable populations and the wider community.
These community-led drives allow residents to discreetly test themselves and receive private results in 20 to 40 minutes.
In an interview with the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in Sunyani, Mr Sopaal noted that knowing one’s HIV status remained essential to protecting oneself from being infected.
He advised the sexually active persons, especially the youth to test and know their HIV status and abstain from unhealthy sex behaviours.
Mr Sopaal said sexual intercourse remained the major driving factor to HIV spread and urged those who could not control their sexual appetites to always use condoms.
He also cautioned the youth against pre-marital sexual practices and the practice of taking multiple sex partners too.
Mr Sopaal noted that though Ghana had gone far in HIV and AIDS education, societal stigmatization and discrimination continued to impede efforts towards fighting the disease.
“HIV is now like any other ordinary disease”, he stated and urged the public to desist from stigmatizing persons living with HIV and AIDS to help curb its spread.
GNA
Edited by Kenneth Odeng Adade
Reporter: Dennis Peprah
[email protected]