HIV incidence high among students in Wassa West District

Tarkwa (W/R), Jan 27, GNA - Dr Teddy Avotri, the Wassa West District Director of Health Services, has said a survey showed that HIV infection among students in the Wassa West District was high. He told newsmen that his outfit was making efforts to approach headmasters, administrators and Parent Teacher Association (PTA's) to talk to the students, saying, " it is frightening if this is happening in secondary schools then we are heading towards a danger zone". Dr Avotri said HIV is still a problem in the district despite a lot of interventions made by non-governmental Organisations such as CARE International, Project Concern, Global Responses Initiative (GLORI) and Forum for Adolescent Concern and Transformation (FACT). ''This means intensive education has not gone down well with the people.''

He attributed the upsurge of diseases to filth, saying, ''the environment is not clean, stagnant waters serve as breeding grounds for mosquitoes and waste are dumped uncontrolled.'' Dr Avotri said the non-enforcement of environmental sanitation byelaws also accounted for the behaviour of the people towards waste management.

He said hitherto environmental sanitation was under the health sector but now it has been sent to district assemblies nationwide. Dr Avotri suggested that the assemblies must implement technical advice from the Ministry of Health to ensure that the environment is clean.