Akufo Addo backs Ghana’s hosting of ICASA 2025

ICASA 2025 Assessment: A group photography of ICASA Assessment Team (Hon. Dr. David Pagwesese Parirenyatwa, SAA President/ICASA President, Mr. Luc Armand Bodea, ICASA Director/SAA Coordinator and Dr. Emmy J. Chesire, SAA Board member) with the President of Ghana, H.E. Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo-Addo, Hon. Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye, Minister of Health, Chief Directors, Director General, Ghana AIDS Commission, Program Manager, National AIDS Control Programme and other Stakeholders at the Jubilee House, Accra - Ghana on the 11 of July 2024

Akufo Addo backs Ghana’s hosting of ICASA 2025

In a significant show of support, President Nana Addo Dankwa Akufo Addo and the Minister for Health, Dr. Bernard Okoe Boye, met with the Society for AIDS in Africa (SAA) team, led by President Dr. David Parrenyatwa, to discuss Ghana’s bid to host the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA) in 2025.

President Akufo Addo affirmed Ghana’s ability to successfully host the conference, highlighting the country’s progress in its national response to HIV, AIDS, and other diseases.

“This will contribute significantly to national development and will ensure that whoever succeeds me as President after my tenure on January 7th, 2025, takes up the task next year since ICASA 2025 will take place in December 2025,” President Akufo Addo stated.

The SAA team’s meeting with President Akufo Addo, some Ministers of State, and other stakeholders in Accra on Thursday 11, July 2024.

ICASA is a biennial conference that aims at collaborating with other national, regional, and international organisations, donors, and other partners to institute policies and promote research knowledge to support the African government’s national responses and strengthen the health system to control and mitigate the impact of HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis, malaria, and other emerging infections.

Dr. Okoe Boye described the hosting of ICASA 2025 as a significant milestone in Ghana’s efforts to combat HIV, AIDS, and other diseases, and it is a demonstration of the country’s commitment to improving healthcare and well-being for its citizens.

“Hosting ICASA 2025 would cement Ghana’s position as a leader in the fight against AIDS in Africa, fostering
international collaboration and knowledge sharing,” Dr. Okoe Boye stated.

Dr. Parrenyatwa informed President Akufo Addo that the team was satisfied with the assessment of Ghana’s proposed venue and facilities and lauded the country for its strong passion and support from development partners and civil society.

Meanwhile, during engagement with Ghanaian authorities, civil society actors in the health sector, and the donor community earlier on Wednesday, Mr. Luc Armand Bodea, the SAA Coordinator, explained the ICASA Committee’s qualification criteria to host the conference.

He said part of the requirement was the need for a conducive environment that will enable a successful programme and that the country should be able to provide a 5,000-seat venue and 21 offices to house participants and meetings and demonstrate the government’s commitment to sponsor 500 youth from all the regions of the country to participate in the conference.

Mr. Bodea mentioned that there are a lot of benefits for the country that will qualify to host ICASA, looking at the number of foreign countries that will come for the conference.

“There are numerous benefits for the qualified country, looking at the number of foreigners who will come to the country. Others benefit will include academic, economic, and, most importantly, the health sector,’ he stated.

He added that, at the conference, opinion leaders in the country will be allowed to put their developmental requests before the board, which is likely to yield a positive outcome.

The SAA team’s courtesy call to President Akufo Addo was to finally get the government and the president’s approval because the conference cannot be held without state and government machinery.

The team is expected to proceed to South Africa and, afterwards, inform Ghana of the final decision.

Other members of the Ghanaian team included Dr. Stephen Ayisi Addo, Programme Manager, the National AIDS/STI Control Programme; Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, Director General, Ghana AIDS Commission; Dr. Chief Nat Nsarko, Consultant; and Prof. Kwasi Torpey, Dean of the School of Public Health, University of Ghana.

The rest are Dr. Anthony Nsiah Asare, Presidential Advisor on Health and Dr. Patrick Kuma-Aboagye, Director General, Ghana Health Service.

The SAA, as part of the assessment, held two separate meetings on Wednesday with Ghana’s development partners, which included the World Health Organisation, UNICEF, UNOP, UNAID, USAID, and World Vision Ghana.

The second meeting was with civil society organisations, including GHANET, WAPCAS, NAP+, the Coalition for NGOs in Health, AGAMAL, Malaria Centre Rep, the National AIDS Commission, and the Ghana AIDS Control Programme.

According to the SAA’s main organiser, ICASA, the selected host country will be announced after the assessment visits to Ghana and South Africa by the SAA Executive Board.

Before the final selection of the host country for ICASA 2025, a notification letter will be sent to the host country, and an MOU will be signed between the selected country and the Society for AIDS in Africa (SAA).

The SAA President is the ICASA 2025 Chair; the host country will appoint a Co-chair for ICASA 2025 in consultation with the SAA.

The Council reserves the right to revoke the hosting rights of a country if there are reasonable doubts about its ability to deliver.

Story By: Francis Ameyibor & Quansah Mavis

Source: Modern Ghana News

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