Most young people risk AIDS in Adansi East - NGO

Most young people in the Adansi East District risk contracting HIV/AIDS, Mr Krizito K E Ackom, Chief Executive Officer of the DECK Youth Foundation (DYF), a non governmental organisation (NGO) in the area has said.

Speaking at a community durbar at Amudurasi, he said this was because society does not see them to be sexually active and lacked information, skills and health services to help them make informed and responsible decisions about their sexual and reproductive health.

Mr. Ackom said the NGO had adopted the "house-to-house" approach to disseminate information to create awareness about the disease and had inaugurated a programme with eight Peer Educators to "move from the conventional ways of campaigning against the pandemic to a more strategise one".

Mr Donald Dankyi, Public Relations Manager of DYF, said research had shown that by 2004, HIV/AIDS would account for 18 per cent of deaths nearing one out of every five in the country.

He said by 2014, it would be responsible for 35 per cent of deaths, more than one of every three in the country or 99,000 out of 285,000 deaths.

"We have devised a way, which will bring the HIV/AIDS pandemic to its lowest percentage and hope after the community project, the impact created will change the sexual behaviour of the Adansiman Township," he said.

Mr Kwesi Amankwah, District Director of Health, cautioned the people against the increasing spread of the disease in the area.

Addressing the durbar under the auspices of the Ghana AIDS Commission through the District Assembly on behalf of the District Chief Executive, Mr D A K Yeboah, he called for serious measures to curb the spread of HIV/AIDS.

Mr Amankwah said about 64 cases were recorded at the District Hospital in 2002 while 19 have been recorded this year and attributed it to the strategic location of Obuasi noted for its high prevalence rate to the area.

He called for special educational programme aimed at the youth and children.