Accra: The Ghana AIDS Commission has raised concerns over the rising number of HIV cases recorded in the Western and Western North regions within the past years. Mr. Dramani Yakubu, the Technical Coordinator of the Commission for the two regions, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview that recent data from the National Estimates and Projection indicated an increase in new infections, with the Western Region in particular recording over a thousand new HIV infections each year for the past five years.
According to Ghana News Agency, the Western Region recorded 1,120 new HIV infections in 2024, noting that despite this being a slight drop from the 1,235 new infections recorded in 2023, the region still averaged three new cases daily, a figure that far exceeded the Commission's annual target of fewer than 500 new cases per year. Mr. Yakubu emphasized the concerning trend of the region recording over 1,000 new infections every year over the past few years.
On HIV prevalence rate in the region, Mr. Yakubu stated that despite a slight drop in the national HIV rate from 1.53 percent in 2023 to 1.49 percent in 2024, the figures in the Western region rather increased from 1.55 percent in 2023 to 1.62 percent in 2024. This positions the Western Region as the sixth highest in HIV prevalence in the country, trailing behind Bono, Eastern, Ahafo, Greater Accra, and Bono East Regions.
For the Western North region, the Technical Coordinator noted that the HIV prevalence decreased from 1.82 percent in 2023 to 1.57 percent in 2024. However, he expressed concern that the prevalence rate in the region was still above the national average in 2014, highlighting the ongoing challenges despite some improvements.
Mr. Yakubu attributed the vulnerability in the two regions to factors such as mining activities, migration, commercial sex work, peer pressure influence, and poverty that have created high-risk environments for HIV transmission. He pointed out behaviors like having concurrent multiple sexual partners, low condom use, and poor treatment adherence as significant contributing factors.
The Technical Coordinator also raised concerns about gender disparities, noting that females accounted for about 65 percent of the HIV population and new infections in the regions. He linked this trend primarily to biological susceptibility rather than behavioral factors, emphasizing the role of social stigma in hampering treatment adherence and community support.
Mr. Yakubu urged the public to take personal responsibility and avoid behaviors that increased their exposure to the virus. He advocated for safe sexual practices, routine HIV testing, and public education as key components of the decentralized HIV and AIDS response. Furthermore, he called for support from all stakeholders, whether financial or technical, to unite in responding to the HIV and AIDS epidemic in the regions and the country as a whole.
