Data from the 2023 national and sub-national HIV and AIDS estimates and projections revealed that 17,774 individuals, including 6,457 males and 11,317 females, were newly infected with HIV that year.
This figure includes 4,869 youths aged 15 to 24, 1,698 children under 15, 1,520 adolescents aged 10 to 19, and 16,076 adults over 15.
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Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, Director General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, disclosed in Accra on Wednesday that the projection indicated a 14.8 per cent decrease in new infections from 2013 to 2023.
“The data indicates that Ghana has not been able to achieve its annual target of a 17 per cent reduction in new HIV infections in the last ten year,” he said.
Dr. Atuahene added that Ghana aims for a 41 per cent reduction in new HIV infections between 2023 and 2030.
According to the projections, 334,095 people in Ghana, including 115,891 males and 218,204 females, were living with HIV in 2023.
In the previous year, there were 17,550 children under 14, 16,381 adolescents between 10 and 19, 33,245 young adults between 15 and 24, and 316,545 adults aged 15 and above living with HIV.
The data also indicated a nine per cent increase in the HIV population from 2013 to 2023, with an expected increase of 6.8 per cent by 2030.
Additionally, projections showed that 12,480 Ghanaians died from AIDS-related illnesses in 2023.
Dr. Atuahene pointed out that despite available treatments preventing disease progression and related deaths, AIDS mortality still occurs unnecessarily.
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He emphasized that Ghana and the global community are committed to achieving the 95-95-95 targets: 95 per cent of people living with HIV knowing their status, 95 per cent of those receiving antiretroviral therapy (ART) achieving viral suppression, and 95 per cent of those on ART being aware of their status by 2025.
In 2023, Ghana reached 65.3 per cent for the first target, 69.4 per cent for the second, and 89.0 per cent for the third.
Most HIV-infected individuals in Ghana are between 15 and 49 years old, representing an economically active population. Dr. Atuahene stressed that ending the AIDS epidemic in Ghana must be a top priority for everyone.
