The Director General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, Dr. Atuahene Kyeremeh, has called on Ghanaians and benevolent institutions to donate to help the Commission live out its mandate of nipping the disease in the bud.
According to him, the Commission and its programs are currently being funded by international donors,
He, however, hinted that the sponsorships might cease soon, which will impede the Commission’s goal of ending HIV/AIDS in the country by 2030.
Dr. Atuahene therefore called on all well-meaning Ghanaians and benevolent institutions to donate to help the Commission deliver on its mandate, adding that the medications required for persons living with the disease are very expensive because they are largely imported.
He disclosed this on Monday in Accra, during the media launch of this year’s World AIDS Day celebration and 20th Anniversary Celebrations.
This year’s celebration falls on December 1, 2022, and has been themed “20 Years of a Multi-Sectoral HIV Response: Accelerating the Process to End AIDS.”
The Commission revealed that there will be various activities related to the celebration.
On the 24th of November, there will be a public lecture at the AICC, Accra, while on the 25th of November 2022, there will be an interaction with the Muslim community at the Central Mosque at Kawukudi, in Accra.
On the 1st of December, the World Aids Day National Durbar as well as the WAD Regional Durbar will come off at the forecourt of the Trade Fair Site in La, Accra, and across all other regions at 10 a.m.
Also, there will be a “National Recognition Night” on the 10th of December, between 6 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.
The celebrations will be crowned with a thanksgiving service on the 11th of December, between 8 a.m. and 11.30 a.m. at the Assemblies of God Church in Accra.
The commission noted further that the celebrations will help create and remind Ghanaians that HIV and AIDS still exist and that they should live well by abstaining from premarital sex, being faithful to their partners, or using condoms to reduce its prevalence.