According to the commission, the galamsey menace has compelled the citizens to engage in indiscriminate and unprotected sex.
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HIV infections on the increase due to galamsey activities — Ghana AIDS Commission
Illegal mining popularly known as galamsey is a major factor in the increase of human immunodeficiency virus (HIV/AIDS) infections in the country, the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC) has said.
HIV
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Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, the Director-General of the AIDS Commission said "The galamsey menace can substantially contribute to the new infections and further undermine progress towards achieving the elimination agenda. A recent study that assessed the impact of national resource extraction projects on HIV transmission risks in local communities in sub-Saharan countries, including Ghana, reports that mine openings increase the odds of HIV infections almost two folds."
Speaking at a ceremony to mark World AIDS day in Accra, he noted that "It also found that new mine openings were associated with increased risky sexual behaviours such as multiple partners, high-risk sexual partners, and unprotected sex with high-risk partners."
Statistics from the National STIs and HIV/AIDS Control Programme indicated that a total of 23,495 people tested positive for HIV in the first half of 2022.
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The figure is two percent of the 948,094 people who undertook HIV testing from January to June 2022, the Programme Manager of the National STIs and HIV/AIDS Control Programme, Dr. Stephen Ayisi Addo has said.
He said most of the 23,495 people who tested positive had since been put on HIV treatment.
As result, a network of institutions leading the HIV and AIDS response in the country has begun national stakeholder engagements as part of processes to review interventions for better outcomes.
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