Women fear pregnancy than HIV – AIDS Control boss

Most women in Ghana are more afraid of getting pregnant than acquiring the HIV/AIDS, Dr Raphael Adu-Gyamfi, a Programmes Officer in the Clinical Care Unit of the National AIDS Control Programme, has said.

Dr Adu-Gyamfi explained that most women do not practise safe sex but are rather quick to procure contraceptives to protect themselves from getting pregnant.

“Culturally,” he said, “Women are unable to negotiate safe sex. Sometimes the women are afraid to ask the men to put on condoms before sex”.

“They rather prefer using emergency contraceptives to protect themselves from getting pregnant. They now fear pregnancy more than AIDS. All these are contributing to higher prevalence.”

He further stated that official figures indicate that AIDS is prevalent among women than men largely because women often go for medical checkups than men.

To that end, the records capture more women than men.

“Men don’t normally go for medical checkups but the women do and, so, the records capture them more than the men,” he told show host Kwabena Prah Jnr (The Don).