It was important for organizations and individuals to accept to contribute to the HIV/AIDS Fund.

       She said it should not be left to the government alone to provide the funding for programmes and interventions meant to roll back the disease.

      Dr. El-Adas was speaking at the Eastern Regional dissemination of the National HIV/AIDS strategic plan in Koforidua.

      It provided the platform for the stakeholders to discuss and make inputs into the implementation of the plan.

     She rallied the people to contribute to the planning of effective national response to the disease.

      Mr. Eric Kwakye Darfour, the Regional Minister, noted that strong progress was being made in the fight against the spread of the infection in the region.

      He did not provide figures but said there was now a decline in the prevalence rate and that the infected, were also living longer.

       He indicated that, despite the improvement in the treatment, prevention interventions and behaviour changes, the region continued to see mother-to-child transmission of the disease, something, which needed to be tackled.

       Ms. Golda Asante, Technical Coordinator of the GAC, announced that a total of 25,000 people in the region went for voluntary test to know their HIV status, last year, and encouraged more others to go for the test.

      The social exclusion - stigmatization of people living with the disease, must also end, she added.