By Gloria Anderson
Despite years of progress in the fight against HIV/AIDS, Ghana is witnessing a worrying resurgence in new infections. Civil society groups are warning that this trend could spiral out of control unless the government urgently activates the long-dormant National HIeV/AIDS Fund.
According to Ernest Amoabeng Ortsin, President of the HIV and AIDS Network, the resurgence is linked to a significant decline in public education and awareness campaigns.
“In the past decade and a half, we have slowed down on public awareness campaigns. Because of that, many young people today do not know anything about HIV,” he explained. “Most of these young people, especially girls, are only worried about getting pregnant. They don’t realize that HIV and other sexually transmitted infections are a real threat.”
A Generation Without Awareness
Mr. Ortsin highlighted that young people between their late teens and early twenties, those now most sexually active, were too young to have witnessed the vigorous anti-HIV campaigns of the 1990s and early 2000s. He noted that the decline in awareness is directly linked to a lack of funding for preventive education.
The Vanishing AIDS Fund
The Ghana AIDS Commission was established in 2002, initially funded by the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria. For more than a decade, the Global Fund supported both medication and prevention programs. However, in recent years, the Fund redirected its resources primarily toward purchasing life-saving antiretroviral drugs, leaving Ghana’s government to finance awareness and prevention. That, Mr. Ortsin says, never happened.
“Government after government, we have not been able to secure adequate funding for prevention and awareness campaigns. The fund was supposed to become operational around 2016 or 2017 after the law was amended, but as we speak, there’s no money in it. After every budget allocation, nothing gets released.”
He revealed that no Finance Minister has yet gone to Parliament to seek approval for budgetary allocations into the National HIV and AIDS Fund, despite legal provisions mandating it.
Rising Infections and a Gloomy Outlook
The impact of this financial neglect is becoming painfully clear. In 2024 alone, 15,290 new HIV infections were recorded in Ghana.
“If we don’t control it, by next year the numbers could rise even higher,” Ortsin warned. “When people get infected, they must be treated and treatment is very expensive.”
While Ghana still receives some medical support from the Global Fund, uncertainty looms. The Fund itself has been hit by reduced international contributions, particularly after the United States government cut funding for several global health programs. The next round of Global Fund allocations begins in 2027, and Ghana may not be guaranteed the same level of support.
“If that happens, government will have to find the money to buy the medications, and they are very expensive. The picture looks very gloomy,” Ortsin lamented.
Falling Behind Global Targets
Globally, the UNAIDS 2030 target seeks to end the AIDS epidemic by ensuring 95% of people living with HIV are diagnosed, 95% of them are on treatment, and 95% of those on treatment achieve viral suppression.
Ghana, however, is lagging far behind.
“We estimate that there are about 334,000 people living with HIV in Ghana. But we have only found 68% of them, and only 69% of those are on treatment,” he revealed.
“It means we’re not doing well as a country. More than 100,000 people are walking around with the virus without knowing their status.”
A Call for Urgent Government Action
With the 2026 national budget set to be presented soon, civil society organizations are making a passionate appeal to the government to finally commit funds to the fight against HIV and AIDS.
“We want to see the Finance Minister go to Parliament and say a hundred million dollars has been voted into the National HIV and AIDS Fund,” Ortsin urged.
“The Ghana AIDS Commission that once led a strong, nationwide campaign has now become a pale shadow of itself. It lacks the resources to partner with NGOs, faith-based groups, and the media as it used to.”
He stressed that the fight against HIV is not over and warned that the country risks reversing all the progress made in the early 2000s if action is not taken immediately.
“We must marshal our forces once again and get everyone on board, just like we did two decades ago. Otherwise, there’s no way Ghana can meet the target of ending HIV by 2030.”
One Response
Thank you very much.
The education is the effective weapon to minimise the continuous spreads of hiv/aids.
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