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About 70,000 persons in the Ashanti Region are HIV positive

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HIV testing is divided into two categories, he explained: PMTCT (Prevention of Mother to Child Transmission), which is primarily for pregnant women, and HIV testing services for non-pregnant women and men. According to Mr. Bandoh, a total of 62,835 pregnant women were tested under the PMTCT category, with 681 testing positive. Furthermore, 3,937 persons tested positive out of 51,940 people evaluated under the HIV testing services category.

According to the Ghana Aids Commission 2022 report, an estimated 72,429 persons in the Ashanti Region are HIV positive.

Only 26,006 of these people are now receiving antiretroviral (ARV) medicine at health institutions, leaving 46,421 unaccounted for in terms of antiretroviral uptake. These people are either uninformed of their situation or have stopped taking ARVs.

Mr Dennis Bandoh, the Deputy Ashanti Regional Focal Person for HIV/AIDS, told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) that the area had 4,618 new cases at the end of the third quarter of 2023, a 2.1 per cent rise from the previous year.

HIV testing is divided into two categories, he explained: PMTCT (Prevention of Mother-to-Child Transmission), which is primarily for pregnant women, and HIV testing services for non-pregnant women and men.

According to Mr. Bandoh, a total of 62,835 pregnant women were tested under the PMTCT category, with 681 testing positive. Furthermore, 3,937 persons tested positive out of 51,940 people evaluated under the HIV testing services category.

“The key challenge we are facing is getting men to test voluntarily because men are mostly hesitant to check their status,” he noted.

Some men feel that if their pregnant wives or partners test negative, they must also be negative. He noted that there have been occasions where sexual partners were unaware of their partners’ status, emphasising the significance of testing regardless of their partners’ status.

Mr Bandoh emphasised that early treatment can arrest the virus’s development to the AIDS stage, urging persons who test positive to seek treatment at health facilities that are convenient for them.

According to Mr Bandoh, a total of 62,835 pregnant women were tested under the PMTCT category, with 681 testing positive. Furthermore, 3,937 persons tested positive out of 51,940 people evaluated under the HIV testing services category.

“The key challenge we are facing is getting men to test voluntarily because men are mostly hesitant to check their status,” he noted.

Some men feel that if their pregnant wives or partners test negative, they must also be negative. He noted that there have been occasions where sexual partners were unaware of their partners’ status, emphasising the significance of testing regardless of their partners’ status.

Mr. Bandoh emphasised that early treatment can arrest the virus’s development to the AIDS stage, urging persons who test positive to seek treatment at health facilities that are convenient for them.

According to the literature and accessible statistics, males having sex with men, female commercial sex workers, long-distance drivers, and uniformed men are the most vulnerable.

“Most men in the gay community have sex with their partners without protection, thereby exposing them to the virus. Men in uniform and long-distance drivers, by the nature of their work, are often deployed to places far from home and also work at night, exposing them to the temptation of having multiple partners and unprotected sex,” Mr Bandoh noted.

He discussed the Ghana Health Service’s novel testing procedures, such as index testing, which encourages persons who have tested positive to send their close relatives and sexual partners for testing.

HIV self-test kits are also accessible at all health facilities where anyone can go in and get them.

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14 injured, father and son killed in an accident

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About 14 people on board the commercial truck with registration number CR-553-16 were injured to varying degrees and were brought to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital (CCTH) for treatment. The remains have been sent to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital mortuary for autopsy and preservation. The Jukwa Police Command has also opened an inquiry into the accident.

An overspeeding car killed a man and his two-year-old kid near Jukwa on the Twifu Praso-Cape Coast Highway.

The two were riding their motorcycles when the truck drove over them, killing them on the spot.

According to an eyewitness, the minibus driver lost control while attempting to overtake another vehicle, crashing with a motorbike and veering off into the jungle.

About 14 people on board the commercial truck with registration number CR-553-16 were injured to varying degrees and were brought to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital (CCTH) for treatment.

The remains have been sent to the Cape Coast Teaching Hospital mortuary for autopsy and preservation.

The Jukwa Police Command has also opened an inquiry into the accident.

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Anti-LGBTQ Bill: Supreme Court adjourns case indefinitely

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Prior to the adjournment, the court dismissed a preliminary objection submitted by the Speaker's counsel, Thaddeus Sory. The attorneys for the plaintiff, television journalist Richard Sky, attempted to change one of the reliefs in the request for injunction, but Mr Sory objected.

The Supreme Court has put the lawsuit against the Sexual Rights and Ghanaian Family Values Bill, better known as the Anti-LGBTQ Bill, on hold indefinitely.

During a hearing on Wednesday, May 8, 2024, the Supreme Court ruled that the documents filed by Speaker of Parliament Alban Bagbin’s counsel included intemperate language.

The judge ordered the legal team to produce fresh documents.

Before the adjournment, the court dismissed a preliminary objection submitted by the Speaker’s counsel, Thaddeus Sory.

The attorneys for the plaintiff, television journalist Richard Sky, attempted to change one of the reliefs in the request for an injunction, but Mr Sory objected.

After consideration, the Apex Court presided over by Chief Justice Gertrude Torkornoo, concluded that the preliminary objection was superfluous.

Justice Torkornoo stated that each side has the right to present their case as they see appropriate, and chastised the Speaker’s team, saying, “You have wasted our time and energy for no reason.”

Richard Sky, a journalist, and Amanda Odoi, a researcher, have launched separate lawsuits against the measure, which is currently awaiting President Nana Akufo-Addo’s signature.

Mr Sky claims that Parliament’s approval of the Human Sexual Rights and Family Values Bill is illegal and requests that the highest court declare the bill null and invalid.

Dr. Odoi has also voiced concerns about several sections of the proposed bill.

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Reports of withdrawal from Ghana did not emanate from us – Société Générale

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"We do not wish to comment more. But, frankly, I insist that the papers are not from SG Ghana," he said. According to widely circulating claims, Société Générale would depart Ghana's banking business after 20 years. Société Générale has signed agreements with Saham Group to transfer its Moroccan businesses. Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, and Chad were among the African nations withdrawn from in 2023. Citing its long-standing presence in Africa, Société Générale intends to focus its resources on regions where it can establish itself as a major bank, in accordance with its overarching plan announced on its website on April 12, 2024.

French bank Société Générale has categorically dismissed speculations of its exit from the Ghanaian banking industry, characterising them as unfounded conjecture.

The bank explained that it is revamping its operations to reflect worldwide market conditions better.

Addressing shareholder worries over the purported departure during the 44th Annual General Meeting, Société Générale’s Managing Director, Hakim Ouzzani, stated that the reports did not come from the bank itself.

“Some speculations have spread about SG Ghana. However, it is crucial to inform all of our stakeholders and shareholders that the news item being disseminated in the media was not released by the group or SG Ghana.

“We do not wish to comment more. But, frankly, I insist that the papers are not from SG Ghana,” he said.

According to widely circulating claims, Société Générale would depart Ghana’s banking business after 20 years.

Société Générale has signed agreements with Saham Group to transfer its Moroccan businesses. Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Mauritania, Burkina Faso, and Chad were among the African nations withdrawn from in 2023.

Citing its long-standing presence in Africa, Société Générale intends to focus its resources on regions where it can establish itself as a major bank, per its overarching plan announced on its website on April 12, 2024.

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