Honourable Boye Laryea, the Municipal Chief Executive of Okaikwei North Municipal Assembly is calling for concerted efforts in the fight against HIV/AIDS in the country.
According to him, it is about time, all Ghanaians unite as one people and one community and lead the fight against the HIV menace.
He disclosed that some estimated 85,403 persons are living with HIV in the Greater Accra alone with the district adult HIV prevalence in the Municipality being 2.05% of the total estimated number of the figure for the Region.
“This means that our numbers are still high and we need to do more to eradicate the disease by 2030 as projected by the UNAIDS” he stated.
Hon. Laryea made the disclosure in an address to mark the World AIDS day on the theme “Let Communities Lead”.
Touching on the theme for the celebration, the Okaikwei North Municipal Chief Executive indicated that letting communities lead simply means that “all of us, including you and me need to get on board to support and advocate for an HIV- free society. This means that although bodies like the UNAID, the Ghana Aids Commission, health professionals and all the relevant stakeholders are doing their best to rid our communities of this deadly disease, we also need to do our part to help reduce the spread of the virus.”
He further indicated that a lot of people have died from AIDS and AIDS-related causes and the day gives “us the opportunity to remember them and remind ourselves about how dangerous the disease is and what to do to avoid it.”
To reverse the trend, Hon Laryea said knowing one’s status; using the newly introduced HIV self-testing kits; using condoms to practice safe sex and being faithful to one’s partners among others are the surest ways to reduce the rate of infection.
The Municipal Coordinating Director Mr. Francis Mensah urged the participants to test in order to know their status.
He emphasized that its only through testing that one can be sure of their status.
Mr. Mensah tasked the Assembly members and the participants to carry the message into the communities.
The day in the Okaikwei North Municipality was marked with free health screening exercise where participants were tested for HIV and malaria.
The participants were also given free condoms and HIV Self-test kits.
Earlier, health officials took the participants through how to use the HIV Self-test kits.
World AIDS day is celebrated every year to afford people around the world the opportunity to unite in response to the HIV and AIDS epidermic and also gives the chance for people to show their support for persons living with and affected by HIV.
SOURCE: onma.gov.gh
