By Dorothy Yeboah
The Ghana AIDS Commission is spearheading a campaign to harness domestic resources for the sustainability of the National HIV/AIDS Response.
This has become necessary due to dwindling global funding and the economic challenges confronting many donor countries that previously funded HIV/AIDS programmes in Ghana.
According to the Commission, Ghana’s commitment to achieving the UNAIDS 95-95-95 target by 2030 is being constrained by a lack of funding and resources.
The UNAIDS 95-95-95 target proposes that by 2030, 95 percent of people living with HIV will know their status, 95 percent will be on antiretroviral therapy (ART), and 95 percent will have the virus suppressed so they cannot pass the disease on to others.
But this ambition may be hindered by the current financial setback, says the Ghana AIDS Commission.
These were highlighted at the 14th Annual HIV/AIDS Partnership Forum held in Accra.
The forum, organized by the Ghana AIDS Commission to mobilize resources towards this target, brought together stakeholders to review progress, challenges, and future strategies in the country’s fight against HIV/AIDS.
It also emphasized the need for increased funding and collaboration between government and stakeholders, including civil society organisations, development partners, and the private sector.
The Acting Director-General of the AIDS Commission, Dr. Kharmacelle Prosper Akanbong, has therefore called for action to realize this national ambition.
He said although the country has made some significant strides in the fight against the epidemic, more needs to be done, and this demands a concerted effort towards ending AIDS as a public health threat within the stipulated period.
‘In an environment of constrained resources such partnership is not optional, it is essential if we are to optimize our impact and sustain the momentum required to meet or national agenda,’ he emphasized.
Mr. Akanbong disclosed that the Commission, working with the Ministry of Labour, Jobs and Employment, secured Cabinet approval of the revised National HIV and Wellness Policy (July 2025).
“This policy is critical in integrating HIV prevention and human-rights-based interventions into broader workplace health and wellbeing frameworks,” he reiterated.
Mr. Akanbong stressed that in the human-rights domain, the Commission has continued to advance rights-based approaches.
“We have made progress in the development of a new National HIV/TB-Related Human Rights Strategic Plan which will guide interventions in this area over the next five years,” he stated.
“The commission reaffirms that this enabling environment remains a key pillar of our response—ensuring that people living with HIV and other vulnerable groups are reached without discrimination remains central to all our efforts,” he added.
Again, Mr. Akanbong revealed that in September this year, the Commission launched the National HIV Response Sustainability Roadmap, which seeks to promote planning, decision-making, and resource mobilisation across sectors to ensure a longer-term financial and operational architecture for the response.
“These achievements reflect the strength of partnership, coordination and shared endeavour. But the financing gaps, the integration challenges and the rights-based barriers remind us that the journey ahead remains demanding,” he noted.
Mr. Akanbong therefore recommended the strengthening of domestic financing, support for local production of HIV commodities, advancement of legal and policy reforms to ensure access without fear, and intensified public education on safe behaviours and nondiscrimination.
He concluded that it is only through a collective partnership that the nation can attain the goal of reducing new HIV infections to zero and securing the health and rights of all in Ghana.
