At least 34,000 new cases of HIV have been recorded in Ghana during the first three quarters of 2024, according to Dr. Stephen Ayisi Addo, Programmes Manager of the National AIDS Control Programme (NACP). The cases were identified through extensive testing and screening efforts by the Ghana Health Service (GHS), which screened around 1.3 million people this year alone.
Dr. Ayisi Addo shared these findings during the launch of Ghana’s 2024 World AIDS Day in Accra, which included a candlelight procession to honor those lost to the disease. This year’s global World AIDS Day theme is “Take the Right Path,” while Ghana’s national theme, “Ending AIDS Together: Stepping Up Prevention Efforts,” calls for collective action in combating the virus.
Despite continuous awareness campaigns by GHS, the rising number of cases is alarming. “The number of people we identified as positive through our testing activities…was 34,000,” Dr. Ayisi Addo reported. He emphasized the importance of individuals with HIV seeking treatment to prevent further spread and encouraged infected individuals to access antiretroviral medications and other preventive resources available anonymously at health facilities.
In his address, Dr. Ayisi Addo urged civil society organizations, religious groups, and community activists to amplify HIV/AIDS awareness efforts, while Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, Director General of the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC), noted that public awareness on HIV as a critical health issue needs reinforcement.
Dr. Atuahene outlined upcoming nationwide activities by GAC to mark World AIDS Day, including a major durbar scheduled in Accra on December 2, 2024. He also emphasized the importance of preventive practices like safe sex and abstinence to reduce transmission rates as Ghana strives to eliminate HIV/AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
The event was attended by representatives from UNAIDS, the Ghana Network of Persons Living with HIV/AIDS (NAP+ GHANA), the Ghana HIV/AIDS Network (GHANET), and other civil society organizations.