Ghana marks maiden International Condom Day
Ghana has for the first time joined the global community to commemorate the International Condom Day (ICD), with a renewed commitment to remind the public to use condoms properly and consistently to prevent the spread of HIV, sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and unplanned pregnancies.
The event was organised by the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC) in collaboration with the AIDS Healthcare Foundation, the Ghana Health Service (GHS) and other stakeholders in condom supply and distribution.
It was on the theme “Condom. Just Use it! Protection is Power”
Speak
ng at the event, the Director-General of the GAC, Dr Kharmacelle Prosper Akanbong, said condoms remained one of the simplest, safest and most cost-effective tools for preventing HIV, other STIs and unintended pregnancies, stressing that prevention was far less expensive than treatment.
“This commemoration is to remind Ghanaians to use condoms properly and consistently to prevent the spread of HIV and STIs, which in turn will help avert the high cost of treating new and existing infections,” He said.
He said the timing of the celebration a day before Valentine’s Day was deliberate as it served as a practical reminder for people to prioritise safety alongside expressions of love.
Low condom use
Dr Akanbong expressed concern about low condom use in the country, citing findings from the Ghana Demographic and Health Survey 2022 which showed that only 9.2 per cent of men and 4.2 per cent of women reported using condoms.
The GAC Director-General said among the sexually active unmarried women, condom use stood at 8.5 per cent.
“These figures point to significant gaps in prevention and underscore the need for renewed education, access and social behaviour change communication,” he said.
He urged the public to take personal responsibility for their sexual health by using a condom to protect themselves.
Shared responsibility
The Director-General of GAC also called on all sectors of society to support condom access and use, while urging Corporate Ghana to consider providing free condoms as part of workplace health practices to promote employee wellbeing.
He announced that the Commission would proceed with plans to raise funds to procure and install condom vending machines at strategic locations across the country to further expand choice and access.
Dr Akanbong said earlier installations had broken down due to vandalism, misuse of coins and theft.
He said they were now focused on deploying innovative, technology-driven vending machines that could track usage and prevent abuse, with possible integration of electronic access systems and HIV self-test kits.
He added that due to funding constraints the initial rollout would target high-risk, high-density areas with support from national security agencies and potential partnerships to help safeguard the machines.
Condom availability
The Country Programme Manager, Ghana AIDS Healthcare Foundation, Dr Ekua E. Houphouet, called on the government, health managers, the private sector and communities to prioritise affordable, stigma-free access to condoms, particularly for young people, stating that access to condoms was a public responsibility not a personal luxury.
The Programme Manager of the National AIDS and STI Control Programme (NACP), Dr Emmanuel Teviu, called for intensified stigma-free prevention efforts targeting adolescents and young adults, stating that one in four new infections occurred among young people,
The Programme Manager, Family Planning Division of the Ghana Health Service, Dr Doris Amarteifio, reaffirmed the Service’s commitment to promoting sexual health and preventing infections.
The Programme Specialist, UNFPA, Dr Dela Bright Gle, also expressed concern over the more than 100,000 teenage pregnancies recorded annually, stressing that condom usage was the only dual-protection tool against HIV, other STIs and unintended pregnancies.
She expressed the UNFPA’s support for the country, while calling for increased investment, warning of supply gaps following the exit of USAID.
