The Vice President, Professor Naana Jane Opoku-Agyemang has called on African leaders to build strong and self-reliant systems capable of ending AIDS, TB and malaria as public health threats.
She stressed that Africa must not wait for others but lead its own response.
Speaking at the opening of the 23rd International Conference on AIDS and STI in Africa (ICASA 2025) in Accra on Wednesday, The Vice President said progress has been recorded globally in reducing new HIV infections and AIDS-related deaths, especially through antiretroviral therapy, HIV self-testing and new prevention tools.
“Yet Africa, which carries more than two-thirds of the global HIV burden, continues to face large inequalities in access to services,” she said.
The conference brought together global community of experts, policymakers, researchers and advocates who continue to shape the direction of health on the continent.
She noted that for over 30 years, ICASA had given Africa a platform to reflect, confront difficult truths, share scientific progress and renew its commitment to ending long-standing epidemics.
This year’s theme, she said, reflected a shifting world where donor priorities are changing, financial pressures are rising and global health emergencies are becoming more frequent.
“While some countries were close to reaching the 95-95-95 targets, many remain far off,”
“About 65 percent of people living with HIV on the continent know their status, and although treatment has expanded, new infections continue to rise, especially among adolescent girls and young women,” she said.
The Vice President warned that Africa’s gains were fragile and must be protected with sustained political, financial and social commitment.
Stigma and discrimination, she said, remained major barriers to testing and treatment.
She also stressed that financing was one of the greatest tests the continent faces, cWith global support less certain than before, Africa must guard against losing the progress made over decades and must rebuild a strong foundation for future health security.”
Professor Opoku-Agyemang said African countries must lead by strengthening domestic financing, improving disease surveillance, building manufacturing capacity and empowering communities and civil society groups.
She added that Ghana wad working to support local production of vaccines, HIV commodities and essential medicines to reduce reliance on external suppliers.
She said prevention must remain at the centre of efforts to end the epidemic, “investments in behavioural interventions, HIV self-testing, targeted programs and new innovations such as long-acting treatment options, she noted, will be vital.”
The Vice President emphasised the crucial role of young people, youth-led groups and community organisations, describing them as the backbone of progress.
The Minister of Health, Kwabena Mintah Akandoh said treatment gaps remained the largest threat to achieving HIV epidemic control in the country.
He expressed government’s commitment to intensify efforts at closing the existing gaps to achieve the 2030 “95, 95, 95” target and end AIDS as a public health threat.
They President of the Society for AIDS in Africa (SAA), Dr David Pagwesese Parirenyatwa, called for collaboration among stakeholders to advance HIV/AIDS interventions on the continent.
BY AGNES OPOKU SARPONG & ABIGAIL ANNOH
