HIV and AIDS prevalence going up among education workers-GNAT

Ho, June 11, GNA - Mr Alexander Mawusi Buadi, the Volta Regional Chairman of the Ghana National Association of Teachers (GNAT), has said while the national HIV and AIDS prevalence was going down, the prevalence among education workers was 9 per cent. He said the Ghana Education Service could not afford to ignore HIV and AIDS issues in view of the threat it posed to ensuring Education For All and appealed to authorities to commit more resources to address HIV issues. Mr Buadi said this on Thursday at the close of a three-day Education For All and AIDS (EFAIDS) workshop in Ho for regional GNAT executives from across the country organized by GNAT with support from Education International.

He said society in general faced the risk of extinction if institutions and individuals continued to play HIV and AIDS issues as a second fiddle and called for a rejuvenated campaign in response to the disease. Mr Samuel Manteaw, Director of Human Resource at the Ghana Education Service (GES), said it was time the Service prioritize HIV and AIDS issues in its pursuant of education for all.

"Giving more attention and resources to issues of HIV and AIDS is the only way we can achieve our goal of ensuring education for all," he said. Mr Manteaw said though the Service had the School Health Education Programme (SHEP) and was committing some resources to ensuring good health of teachers and learners, special priority needed to be given to the campaign against HIV and AIDS to keep the country's human resource in good health. He said awareness creation among teachers and learners was high but more needed to be done for it to be translated into behavioural change. Ms Helena Awurasa, Workshop Coordinator, said having developed a workplace HIV and AIDS policy for teachers and established a counselling centre at the GNAT Headquarters, it was time for the Service to reach out to parents and society at large, all aimed at ensuring Education For All. Mr Scott Pulizzi, a Representative of Education International, said there was hope in the campaign in response to the virus. 11 June 10