It's time US grants for HIV/AIDS get to CBOs

Ho, Feb. 20, GNA - Mr Livingnus Acquah-Jackson, Executive Director of New Seed International (NSI), a Ho-based non-governmental organization, on Wednesday called on US President George Walker Bush to make Community Based Organisations (CBOs) the focal points of its grants for HIV/AIDS activities in Ghana.

He said this would make the grants to have direct impact on the drive against the virus at the grassroots.

Mr Acquah-Jackson told the GNA in an interview that grants from the US towards HIV/AIDS seemed to have been directed at organising conferences and workshops leaving little or nothing for implementing research findings.

Mr Acquah-Jackson said while workshops and seminars were important in combating the disease, implementation of research findings could not be compromised. "The CBOs are in the communities with the people, work with them, have ideas but lack the resources to organize result oriented activities", he said. Mr Acquah-Jackson said the situation in the Ho Municipality was still bad and called on stakeholders to support CBOs in the area to fight stigma that remains one of the major problems in the fight against the virus.