The dialogue, which will bring together key stakeholders from government, civil society, the private sector, recipients of care and development partners involved in HIV prevention, treatment and care in Ghana, is also meant to identify ways to improve and sustain access to and availability of essential HIV commodities.

Being organised by the National AIDS/STIs Control Programme in collaboration with the Global Fund and UNAIDS, it formed part of the anti-retroviral treatment (ART) at 20 activities, which is a year-long series of impactful engagements to commemorate 20 years of the provision of antiretrovial medicines to People Living with HIV (PLHIV).

This was contained in a statement issued by the Ghana AIDS Commission ahead of the dialogue. For the past 21 years, the government has never procured ART for PLHIV. Donors have been doing this.

 

However, donor funds will cease and the country must plan for HIV commodities security, hence the dialogue.

HIV commodities

HIV commodities include prevention commodities, antiretroviral therapy, essential medicines, test kits, laboratory commodities and other supplies. The statement cited the objectives of the dialogue to include identifying key bottlenecks and challenges affecting access to, availability and sustainability of HIV commodities; discussing solutions and strategies to address challenges to commodities security and sustainability and strengthening partnerships and coordination among stakeholders around HIV commodity security and sustainability.

The one-day dialogue, the statement said, would focus on three thematic areas, namely achieving sustainable financing for HIV commodities in Ghana; exploring the opportunity of local manufacture of HIV commodities and addressing supply chain challenges of HIV commodities including tax waivers, port clearance, warehousing and distribution.

It said the programme would include plenary presentations, keynote speeches, panel discussions and facilitated group discussions explaining that, all the sessions would be designed to elicit sustainable solutions, answers to longstanding questions and challenges, ideas for achieving results and impactful commitments for high-level decision makers to ensure the security and sustainability of HIV prevention and treatment commodities.