{"id":102058,"date":"2025-11-05T16:49:48","date_gmt":"2025-11-05T16:49:48","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=102058"},"modified":"2025-11-05T16:49:48","modified_gmt":"2025-11-05T16:49:48","slug":"ghana-urged-to-own-hiv-response-amid-shifting-global-priorities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/?p=102058","title":{"rendered":"Ghana urged to own HIV response amid shifting global priorities"},"content":{"rendered":"
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\n \t<\/i> Read Time:<\/span>1 Minute, 59 Second <\/div>\n\n <\/div>
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Chairman of the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC) Governing Board, Kakra Essamuah, has called for national ownership of Ghana\u2019s HIV response as global funding priorities threaten its sustainability.<\/p>\n

He said the future of HIV programming depended on the country\u2019s ability to mobilise domestic resources, strengthen partnerships, and sustain political, financial, and social commitment to ending AIDS.<\/p>\n

Speaking at the launch of the 2025 World AIDS Day in Accra on Tuesday, Mr Essamuah urged private sector involvement, noting that HIV affects workforce productivity and economic growth.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe private sector must rise to the challenge by investing in workplace HIV programmes, supporting awareness and testing campaigns,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Acting Director-General of the GAC, Dr Kharmacelle Prosper Akanbong, said Ghana must respond to global economic pressures and address persistent barriers in HIV prevention, especially considering declining donor support.<\/p>\n

He appealed to Ghanaians to contribute to the National HIV and AIDS Fund, stating, \u201cGhana must mobilise, innovate and lead the HIV response.\u201d<\/p>\n

Dr Akanbong condemned stigma and discrimination against persons living with HIV.<\/p>\n

\u201cHIV is a health condition that is manageable, and people living with HIV have the right to dignity, respect and full participation in society,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Dr Akanbong described this year\u2019s global theme, \u201cOvercoming Disruption, Transforming the AIDS Response,\u201d<\/em> as reflective of Ghana\u2019s current challenges.<\/p>\n

\u201cAcross the globe, and here in Ghana, our HIV response has encountered significant disruptions: funding constraints, shifting global priorities, competing health emergencies and evolving social dynamics,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n

Dr Akanbong said the Commission would work with stakeholders to protect and accelerate gains made in HIV prevention.<\/p>\n

World AIDS Day is marked annually to renew national commitment to ending AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.<\/p>\n

This year\u2019s celebration will promote remote voluntary testing, linkage to care, treatment, and retention, in line with the UN 95-95-95 targets.<\/p>\n

The event would also serve as a platform to advocate for increased domestic financing through the National HIV and AIDS Fund.<\/p>\n

The GAC seeks to intensify community-level education on prevention, treatment, and stigma reduction throughout November.<\/p>\n

Dr Akanbong said media outreach and condom distribution activities would be undertaken nationwide, and called on Metropolitan, Municipal, and District Assemblies to support local efforts.<\/p>\n

He announced that the celebration would be climaxed on Monday, December 1, 2025, with a national address by President John Dramani Mahama on Ghana\u2019s HIV response.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

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\"GhanaChairman of the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC) Governing Board, Kakra Essamuah, has called for national ownership of Ghana\u2019s HIV response as global funding priorities threaten its sustainability.<\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"rop_custom_images_group":[],"rop_custom_messages_group":[],"rop_publish_now":"initial","rop_publish_now_accounts":{"facebook_2277560469115098_106292521332774":"","twitter_aToxNzczMzI3Njk4OTg4ODUxMjAxOw==_1773327698988851200":""},"rop_publish_now_history":[],"rop_publish_now_status":"pending","_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[11947,7,2377,11948,1883,10,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-102058","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-ghana-aids-commission-gac-governing-board","category-health","category-hiv","category-kakra-essamuah","category-national","category-politics","category-popular"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102058","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=102058"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/102058\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=102058"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=102058"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/sotnews.agency\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=102058"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}