Dr Angela El-Adas
Dr Angela El-Adas, Director General of the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC), has expressed concern about the continued discrimination and stigmatisation of people living with the HIV/AIDS infection, something she disclosed, is not helpful to the fight against the disease.
She said the discrimination must stop and warned of punishing those trampling on the human rights of such patients.
This was contained in a speech read for her at the Ashanti Regional celebration of this year’s World AIDS Day in Obogu in the Asante-Akim South District.
The event was held under the theme: ‘90-90: Providing Comprehensive Integrated Services For All Towards An HIV-Free Generation’.
Dr El-Adas said the new GAC Act made it a punishable offence to violate the human rights of people living with the disease through stigmatisation.
She said the law will come into force next year.
She underlined the determination of the commission to scale up its ‘heart-to-heart’ campaign to fight the public stigma.
It will also focus more effort on preventing mother-to-child transmission through an integrated approach, including male involvement.
John Alexander Ackon, the Ashanti Regional Minister, urged stakeholders to work together to ensure that HIV services become more accessible to help achieve an HIV-free generation.
He encouraged the commission, civil society organisations and other players to work together to further bring down the national prevalence rate which now stands at 1.8 percent.
He identified discrimination and stigmatisation as the most serious hindrance to the effort to stop the spread of the disease.
Mr Ackon complained about the situation where infected persons travel long distances outside their communities to access anti-retroviral drugs due to stigmatisation.
GNA