GHANET launches HIV and AIDS awareness campaign

The Ghana HIV and AIDS Network (GHANET) has launched an awareness drive urging the citizenry in Ghana to keep their health and wellness as priorities.

Employing the tag line “Spread Love, Not the Virus,” the initiative shall enlighten the public and more so, young people about safer sex practice and how HIV may be averted.

In a release by GHANET President Ernest Amoabeng Ortsin, the group emphasized avoiding unsafe sex habits that could lead to new HIV infections. According to GHANET, December 2023 statistics show that 334,000 people in Ghana were HIV-positive. Also, between January and September 2024, a whopping 35,460 new cases were recorded.

Whereas the national HIV prevalence rate is 1.53%, the rising rate of new infections remains a concern.

GHANET’s Call to Action

To avoid HIV spread, GHANET has called upon the youth and the general public to adhere to the following preventive measures:

1. Shun Risky Sexual Acts – like unprotected sex, multiple sex partners, sex parties, hookups, and drug use, which increase one’s vulnerability to HIV.
2. Practice Safe Sex – by wearing condoms regularly and correctly, which are readily available in pharmacies, health centers, and community-based outlets.
3. Abstain from Sex – if it is not right, as abstinence remains the best method of prevention from HIV.

GHANET also encourages Ghanaians to move a step forward and get to know their HIV status by testing. For privacy-minded individuals, HIV Self-Testing (HIVST) kits are an intimate option.