The Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC) has launched an online platform allowing citizens to request free HIV self-testing kits for delivery to their homes. This initiative aims to reduce stigma and barriers preventing people from knowing their HIV status. The platform, www.selftestghana.online, which went live on October 1, 2026, provides two test kits per request to encourage couples to test together. Users are required to pay for delivery charges.
The online platform also offers information about HIV and lists around 700 health facilities across the country where people can access HIV-related services. At the launch of this year's World AIDS Day celebration in Accra, the Director-General of GAC, Dr. Kharmacelle Prosper Akanbong, urged people to take advantage of the initiative to know their HIV status. He emphasized that testing is the first step in preventing HIV.
According to Dr. Akanbong, an estimated 337,435 people were living with HIV in Ghana as of 2025, with about 13,957 new infections recorded. Young people aged between 15 and 24 accounted for about 30% of new infections. However, Dr. Akanbong reported a reduction in prevalence from 4.2% to 1.4%. He also noted that about 70% of people living with HIV knew their status, and 81% of those diagnosed were receiving treatment.
Dr. Akanbong further stated that 92% of those on treatment had achieved viral suppression, and there had been a decline in new infections and HIV-related deaths. Annual deaths fell from about 24,000 to fewer than 12,000. He appealed to government agencies, the private sector, and individuals to contribute to the National HIV and AIDS Fund to sustain prevention and treatment programs.
The Board Chairman of the Ghana AIDS Commission, Kakra Essamuah, mentioned that the commission is working to move prevention programs from centralized facilities to community-level interventions. The Programme Manager of NACP, Dr. Emmanuel Teviu, emphasized that access to HIV services must be treated as a basic requirement rather than a privilege to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
The Programme Coordinator of GHANET, Gladys Akwetey, encouraged people to get tested, noting that self-testing kits come with instructions to guide users through the process and interpretation of their results. Other stakeholders, including the UNAIDS Representative and the Country Manager of AIDS Healthcare Foundation Ghana, called for increased investment in HIV prevention and sustained funding.
The World AIDS Day celebration in Ghana was held under the global theme: "Ending AIDS starts with access," with the sub-theme: "Forty years of steady progress, stepping up prevention to end AIDS." Stakeholders emphasized the need for collective action to end AIDS, with a focus on increasing access to HIV services, especially for young people.
Key points
- The Ghana AIDS Commission has launched an online platform for citizens to request free HIV self-testing kits.
- The initiative aims to reduce stigma and barriers preventing people from knowing their HIV status.
- Stakeholders are calling for increased investment in HIV prevention and sustained funding to end AIDS as a public health threat by 2030.
Reporting sources
- Daily Graphic · Daily Graphic
