The Director-General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, has raised concerns about the challenging financial situation the commission is facing due to the withdrawal of donor support and reduced government funding.
During the Public Accounts Committee sitting in Accra on Wednesday, July 26, 2023, he highlighted the dire impact this funding shortage is having on the commission’s operations.
Dr. Atuahene revealed that the commission is currently not receiving any funding from donors, which is severely undermining their ability to function effectively.
“Presently, we do not receive any funding from donors. This is severely undermining our operations, especially as government funding is also dwindling,” he noted.
Additionally, the level of government funding has also decreased, further exacerbating the situation.
To address this pressing challenge, the Ghana AIDS Commission is actively seeking alternative partnerships and initiatives to generate funds for carrying out its mandate.
Dr. Atuahene explained that they are analyzing the financial situation and working with partners to come up with a sustainability assessment and financial planning for the AIDS response.
Furthermore, the commission has taken various initiatives to engage the general public and seek their support in implementing the national AIDS response.
One such initiative is the USSD code *9898#, which has been introduced to allow the public to contribute and help bridge the significant financial gap faced by the commission.
Despite the funding constraints, the Ghana AIDS Commission remains committed to fulfilling its mandate and continuing its efforts to combat HIV/AIDS in the country.
“The Ghana AIDS Commission has a mandate to mobilize resources with support of the National HIV/AIDS Response as per the act that created the commission, Act 938. And so what we are doing currently is to analyze the financial situation and look at the sustainability of the AIDS response. We are working with our partners in coming up with a sustainability assessment and planning for the finances of the AIDS response.
“We have also worked on a number of initiatives to actually reach out to the general public to support the commission in implementing the national AIDS response. So we currently have the USSD code *9898# which we have put out for the general public to help the commission fill the huge financial gap,” he stated.