'One in every three Ghanaians living with HIV unaware' — AIDS Commission
Projections from this year's National HIV Estimates by the Ghana AIDS Commission show that nearly one in every three Ghanaians living with HIV does not know their status.
The Estimates also show that out of about 334,721 people living with HIV as of 2025, only 227,593, representing 68 per cent, know their HIV status.
Speaking at the dissemination of the 2015 HIV Estimates and Projections in Accra on Monday, Dr Kharmacelle Akanbong, Director General of GAC said the low proportion of people who know their status remained the weakest link in the country's HIV response.
He said HIV testing remained the critical first step in the continuum of care because individuals could only access life-saving treatment after knowing their status.
He said while the country had made commendable gains in treatment and viral suppression, more people must voluntarily test for HIV if Ghana is to achieve the global UNAIDS 95-95-95 targets by 2030.
“The targets require that 95 per cent of people living with HIV know their status, 95 per cent of those diagnosed receive sustained antiretroviral therapy (ART), and 95 per cent of those on treatment achieve viral suppression, where the virus is reduced to undetectable levels,” he said.
Mr Isaiah Doe Kwao, Director for Research Monitoring and Evaluation, GAC who presented the report said out of 227,593 people who know their HIV status, 156,821 are receiving ART, representing 69 per cent of those diagnosed.
He said for those on treatment, 140,357 people had achieved viral suppression, accounting for 90 per cent of those receiving ART.
“The figures translate into Ghana's current treatment cascade of 68-69-90, while the country is approaching the third global target on viral suppression, substantial gaps remain in HIV diagnosis and treatment coverage,” he said.
Mr Kwao said viral suppression was one of the most important indicators in HIV care because people whose viral load became undetectable remained healthy and did not sexually transmit the virus when they consistently take their medication.
The Estimates further showed that the number of people tested for viral load among those receiving treatment increased from 54,538 in 2018 to 125,051 in 2025.
Similarly, the number of people who achieved viral suppression more than tripled from 36,226 in 2018 to 114,956 in 2025, reflecting improvements in treatment adherence, laboratory capacity and patient follow-up.
According to the projections, adult women continue to perform better across the treatment cascade, with 79 per cent knowing their HIV status, 82 per cent receiving treatment and 93 per cent achieving viral suppression.
Among adult men, 57 per cent know their status, 76 per cent are on treatment and 91 per cent have suppressed viral loads.
The Estimates showed that only 46 per cent of children living with HIV know their status, although 87 per cent of those diagnosed are receiving treatment and 81 per cent have achieved viral suppression.
The Ghana AIDS Commission attributed the low diagnosis rate among children partly to missed opportunities for early infant diagnosis and called for intensified efforts to identify HIV-positive children early and link them to treatment.
It urged the public to embrace HIV testing, noting that early diagnosis allows people to begin treatment promptly, live long and healthy lives, and prevent further transmission of the virus.
The Commission said Ghana could attain epidemic control if more people voluntarily tested for HIV, remained on treatment and achieved sustained viral suppression, while efforts continued to eliminate stigma and discrimination associated with the disease.