AIDS Commission tasks partners to be conversant with Strategic Plan

The Director-General of the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC), Dr. Mokowa Blay Adu-Gyamfi has tasked regional and district partners of the GAC to be conversant with the contents of the National HIV and AIDS Strategic Plan (NSP).

The move, according to her will enable stakeholders to have a clear understanding of the strategic direction of the national response as they provide services and implement activities for the next five years. She was speaking at the Upper West Regional dissemination of the National HIV and AIDS Strategic Plan (NSP) 2016-2020 and Ghana AIDS Commission Act, Act 398 of 2016 in Wa.

Dr. Adu-Gyamfi stated that the NSP document is to guide the Commission and its allies to improve the quality coverage and scaling-up of services for national response in the next five years. The Director-General said that the passage of the new Act was aimed at making the GAC more efficient by reducing its membership, establishing a national HIV and AIDS Fund and making clear provisions that protect the human rights of Persons Living with HIV (PLWHIV).

The Deputy Upper West Regional Minister, Amidu Chinnia Issahaku was of the view that Ghana has done well to have a low national HIV prevalence rate of 1.8 percent, saying the achievement is tied to planned programs and actions guided by National HIV and AIDS Strategic Plan.

He stated that Upper West Region has done better by having a lower HIV prevalence rate of 1.3 percent and commended the Regional AIDS committee for a job well done. Mr. Issahaku observed that in spite of the successes, challenges exist in terms of mobilizing adequate resources for addressing livelihood enhancement and providing sustainable home-based care to PLWHIV, orphans and vulnerable children.

According to the national strategic plan, Ghana’s population is expected to increase to about 31 million by 2020 and to ensure that all persons living with the HIV know their status by the target date, about 13.5 million people will need to be tested and counseled for HIV and receive the results. Strategies to support the plan among others include, providing quality HIV testing services, piloting of self-testing and peer-led testing for