The Chief of Staff at the Office of the President, Akosua Frema Osei-Opare, is advocating for increased investments in educating the girl child in Ghana as a tool to end the spread of HIV/AIDS.
Speaking at the 2023 World AIDS Day National Durbar organized by the Ghana AIDS Commission, she revealed that gender inequality is one of the major reasons for the disproportionate HIV disease burden among women and girls.
According to her, two out of three Ghanaians living with HIV are women, with four out of five new infections being found in young adolescent girls and young women aged between 15 and 24 years.
“For us to end AIDS, we must eliminate inequalities, stigma, and discrimination in every form of its manifestations by educating the girl child,” she said.
Further speaking, she highlighted some forms of structural inequalities that deter infected young girls and women from seeking medical attention when needed.
“Today, the world is off track from delivering on the set commitment to end AIDS by 2030. This is not because of a lack of knowledge or tools to beat AIDS, but because of structural inequalities that obstruct proven solutions to HIV prevention and treatment.
Gender inequalities, stigma, or discrimination associated with populations at higher risk of HIV restrain people from accessing prevention and treatment services,” she added.
