Ghana AIDS Commission distributes over 35,000 condoms in Upper West Region

The Ghana Aids Commission has distributed 35,600 condoms to people in the Upper West Region in 2024 as part of efforts to prevent the spread of HIV in the region.

Condoms were distributed at events, and some were picked up by individuals from the Commission’s office.

Mr Osei-Bonsu Gyamfi, the Upper West Regional Technical Coordinator of the GAC, disclosed this in a presentation in Wa during the second Regional Committee of the Ghana Aids Commission (RECCOM) and Coordination meeting.

The meeting served as a platform for the actors in the HIV space to discuss and review progress made in the campaign towards ending HIV/AIDS, discuss the challenges, and strategise interventions to curb the spread of HIV in the region.

Mr Gyamfi indicated that the Commission had embarked on several interventions and activities to prevent the spread of HIV in the region,  including institutional sensitisation and rigorous HIV testing and service provision.

He said inadequate funds for HIV/AIDS-related interventions, including regular monitoring visits to the districts was a major challenge to the Commission’s quest to curb its spread.

Mr Gyamfi said the Municipal and District Assemblies were also reluctant to release the HIV/AIDS component of the District Assembly Common Fund (DACF) for activity implementation, which he said was hampering the commission’s efforts.

Other challenges he identified as impeding their efforts in curbing the spread of HIV were few Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) involvement in the HIV space in the region, high HIV-related stigma and discrimination, and increased Men Sexing Men (MSM) in the region.

He called on the media to intensify advocacy on HIV/AIDS-related issues to raise awareness against HIV/AIDS stigma to support the cause of curbing HIV spread.

Mr Dramani Abdul-Razak, the Upper West Regional Operations Manager for Hope for Future Generation (HFFG), emphasised the need to address stigmatisation against persons living with HIV/AIDS.

He stated that his organisation was implementing various projects aimed at reducing stigma and ensuring better integration of Persons living with HIV/AIDS into society.

CSO representatives, including HFFG, the National Association of Persons Living with HIV/AIDS (NAP+), the Ghana HIV/AIDS Network (GHANET), and representatives of the Christian Council, among others, attended the meeting.

Data from the Ghana AIDS Commission indicate that new HIV infections in the Upper West Region were 368 in 2022 against 300 in 2023.