As part of efforts to prevent the spread of HIV this year, the Ghana Aids Commission has distributed 35,600 condoms to people in the Upper West Region.
The condoms were distributed at various events, while some beneficiaries went to the commission’s office in the region for theirs.
This was revealed by Mr. Osei-Bonsu Gyamfi, the Upper West Regional Technical Coordinator of the GAC, during a presentation in Wa at the second Regional Committee of the Ghana Aids Commission (RECCOM) and Coordination meeting.
This meeting served as a platform for stakeholders to discuss and review progress made in the campaign towards ending HIV/AIDS, discuss the challenges, and fashion interventions to curb the spread of HIV in the region.
According to Mr. Gyamfi, 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.
Mr. Gyamfi added that 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 stated were a 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 further 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.