By: Henrietta Avollah Afful
At the Presidency in Accra on Thursday 4th December, 2025, a powerful call to action echoed through a high-level gathering of African First Ladies: move beyond advocacy and take decisive steps that will end AIDS in children and mothers by 2030. The message came from Ghana’s First Lady, Mrs. Lordina Mahama, who urged her peers across the continent to transform promises into practical solutions that safeguard the most vulnerable.
“As First Ladies, we carry a responsibility to elevate the voices of those who are too often not heard, the mothers in remote villages, the newborns who are vulnerable to preventable infection,” she said on behalf of the Association of African First Ladies for Development on the sideline of ICASA Conference.
Thursday’s meeting, being hosted by Ghana’s First Lady, was on “Ending Mother-to-Child Transmission and the Triple Elimination of HIV, Syphilis, and Hepatitis B in Africa.”
A Growing Threat to Children
Mrs. Mahama expressed deep concern over the rising number of children acquiring HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B during pregnancy, childbirth, or breastfeeding, transmissions that medical experts insist can be almost entirely prevented with timely intervention.
“Thousands of African children continue to acquire HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B during pregnancy, childbirth, and breastfeeding,” she noted. “According to UNICEF and WHO, mother-to-child transmission can be reduced below 5%. However, it requires a combination of political will, sufficient resources, and community participation.”
Through her office’s partnership with the Ghana AIDS Commission, Mrs. Mahama has championed extensive community outreach initiatives. These programmes, rolled out nationwide, have provided young people and families with free HIV screening, counselling, and access to quality care, efforts she believes are crucial in bridging gaps in early detection and treatment.
A Continental Promise
The high-level meeting also heard from Dr Fatima Maada Bio, First Lady of Sierra Leone and President of the Organization of African First Ladies for Development (OAFLAD). She described the push to end AIDS as “a moral promise” to future generations.
“Africa is not just responding to history, but boldly writing a new one,” she declared. “A history where no mother loses her life giving birth and no child enters this world burdened by a preventable infection.”
Under her leadership, OAFLAD has amplified issues surrounding HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B, working closely with regional and global health bodies to strengthen health systems and expand integrated services.
“Partnership is our power,” she emphasized. “Through it, Africa has moved closer to the dream of triple elimination.”
Confronting Stigma, the “Silent Killer”
Dr. Maada Bio also addressed the lingering societal stigma associated with HIV, a barrier she described as deadly. Eliminating stigma, she said, demands persistent community engagement and education, supported by strong political commitment.
OAFLAD, she assured, is ready to lead with renewed energy, guided by its 2025–2030 strategic framework, to champion universal access to high-quality Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission (PMTCT) and triple elimination services.
Spotlight on ICASA 2025: A Vital Platform in Accra
This high-level meeting of First Ladies took place at a very significant moment as the continent-wide conference, ICASA 2025, officially kicked off in Accra. This is the first time that the Society for AIDS in Africa (SAA)’s flagship conference is being held in Ghana.
- ICASA 2025, the 23rd edition runs from December 3 to 8, 2025 under the theme “Africa in Action: Catalysing Integrated Sustainable Responses to End AIDS, TB & Malaria.”
- The conference gathers a broad coalition: heads of government, health ministers, global agencies, researchers, civil society, PLHIV networks, youth groups, private-sector partners and media, all united in a shared goal to end AIDS and strengthen Africa’s health systems.
- ICASA 2025 is not only about HIV/AIDS, it also addresses TB, malaria, emerging diseases, STIs, and broader health-system resilience. The aim is to foster sustainable, integrated responses and reduce Africa’s vulnerability to infectious diseases.
- A notable feature of this year’s conference is a strong emphasis on community engagement: the “Community Village,” a space for people living with HIV (PLHIV), youth, women, activists, civil society organisations, and community-led groups to share their stories, propose solutions, access services, and help shape policy from the grassroots.
Why This Moment Matters
In light of shifting global funding landscapes and rising pressure on donor-driven health programmes, ICASA 2025 comes at a critical time. The conference underscores the need for African ownership; politically, financially, and socially, of the continent’s health response.
For Ghana and for the continent at large, hosting ICASA brings opportunity: a chance to re-energize national strategies, highlight gaps, especially in maternal and child health and forge stronger commitments to triple elimination of HIV, syphilis, and hepatitis B.
United For A Healthier Future
The convergence of First Ladies’ leadership and the scientific, political, and community momentum of ICASA 2025 creates a powerful synergy. Their message is clear: the fight against HIV in Africa demands courage, collaboration, and sustained investment.
With political leaders’ spouses stepping forward as advocates and implementers and with ICASA offering a platform for accountability, innovation, and shared learning, there is renewed hope that by 2030, Africa could finally turn the tide on one of its most persistent public-health challenges.
