The Ghana AIDS Commission has raised alarms over the rising rate of new HIV infections and highlighted the age groups most affected in the country.

As a result, the Commission has underscored the necessity for Ghana to declare and implement strategies aimed at achieving epidemic control.

Between 2013 and 2023, Ghana experienced a 9.0% increase in the HIV population, with a projected 6.8% rise expected from 2023 to 2030.

However, new HIV infections saw a 14.8% decrease to 17,774 cases. AIDS-related deaths also decreased by 20.5%, totaling 12,480 fatalities during the same period, with an anticipated further reduction of 58.1% by 2030.

Accra, Ashanti, and the Eastern Region report the highest number of HIV cases nationwide, while the Bono Region leads with an HIV prevalence rate of 2.12%.

Presenting the 2023 national and sub-national HIV and AIDS estimates and projections at a press conference in Accra, Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, Director-General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, called for stringent measures to achieve epidemic control.

“Adults aged 25 and above constitute the majority of the HIV population, which is about 84.7 percent. You can see quite clearly that the bulk of the people either dying of AIDS, being newly infected and being one of the HIV population in the country lie between the ages of, 15 to 49.

“That’s where you see the bulk of the population. This population is an economically active population. These are the people who work and earn income to support the country as well as the dependent population in the country.”

“That is the aged and the children who are not working. I’m making this point because it shows quite clearly that HIV is a developmental issue. It’s an economic issue, and it’s also a business issue.

“And so we should remember that our ability to eliminate AIDS or end AIDS and achieve epidemic control in the country should be the business of everyone, and therefore, we need to work together,” he stated.