YMCA organizes anti-AIDS campaign for the youth

Koforidua, Nov.24, GNA- As part of activities marking the celebration of the Worlds AIDS Day on December 1, the Young Men Christian Association (YMCA), has organized a seminar for about 400 Junior and Senior High students in the New Juaben Municipality. The Programmes Officer of the YMCA, Mr Kwabena Nketia-Addae said the seminar which was the third in a series was aimed at educating the school children on the need to abstain from sex and focused on their studies.

He said it had reached a point in the AIDS campaign where behavioural change should be tackled with all efforts for the youth to appreciate the need to stay clear of sex.

Mr. Nketia-Addae, expressed concern that despite the intensive awareness creation on modes of transmission and prevention, people still thought AIDS was not real or was far away from them, irrespective of their lifestyles.

A volunteer from Rural Watch, a Non Governmental Organization (NGO) working on disease prevention, Mr William Appiah, said stigma attached to AIDS was now fading and that had made people willing to declare their status.

He said although the prevalent rate in the Eastern Region was still high, people now freely declared their status and visited the hospitals for drugs and that could help reduce the spread of the disease. Mr Appiah welcomed the idea of YMCA targeting children because, to him the students had certain information on AIDS that needed to be shaped for their benefit.

The participants were drawn from Ghana Secondary School, Koforidua, Koforidua Secondary School and Koforidua Technical School, New Juaben College of Commerce and selected Junior High Schools in the municipality.