Most young Ghanaians are more afraid of getting pregnant and try to avoid it than they are of HIV/AIDS, according to Mr. Anani Adator, the HIV/AIDS Coordinator for the Ada East District.
During a recent interview, Mr. Adator noted that while contraceptives continuously run out at pharmacies and medical facilities, condoms stay on the shelf and expire without being purchased.
His claim was supported by information from the national and subnational HIV/AIDS estimates for 2023.
The HIV population increased by 9% between 2013 and 2023, and it is expected to increase by 6.8% by 2030. In 2023, 17,774 people—6,457 males and 11,317 females—became newly infected with HIV, according to the Ghana AIDS Commission.
The data shows that 12,480 Ghanaians lost their lives in 2023 due to illnesses associated with AIDS.
“The regional data is not looking too good,” Mr. Adator declared. The reason the regional data is frightening is that, when comparing the national figures, particularly in Ada, the percentage of individuals affected by the deadly disease is approximately 11%, whereas the national rate is only 5%.
He disclosed that while the report counted 1,151 HIV/AIDS positive individuals in Ada, the actual number of afflicted individuals may be closer to 1,800, since the figures may not have included those who chose not to disclose their status to medical facilities.
He continued by saying that sometimes victims have to be pursued and coerced into taking their prescriptions.
Some people even give us incorrect contact information, making it impossible to contact them, and as a result, they infect others. I worry that if action is not taken, there will eventually be HIV and AIDS positive tests in every family,” he bemoaned.
The Naana Kakie Foundation, an NGO and Ada stakeholder, was praised by Mr. Adator for their initiative in assisting with HIV/AIDS education for the general public, schools, organizations, and religious groups in order to stop the virus’s spread and encourage safe sex practices.
He continued by saying that the local language-based sensitization program they run has made a substantial contribution to the effort to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS.
Apart from cautioning the youth against engaging in unprotected sexual activity, he also made it clear that HIV/AIDS patients needed to take their medication as prescribed and emphasized the significance of increasing public knowledge about the disease to halt its transmission.
