WA ASSEMBLY TO BLACKLIST DEFAULTING NGOS (PAGE 22, SEPT 25, 2010)

THE Wa Municipal Assembly has resolved to blacklist and withdraw support for non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and other stakeholders engaged in anti HIV/AIDS activities in the municipality if they fail to regularly submit reports on their activities to the assembly.
The Municipal Chief Executive (MCE), Mr Duogo Yakubu, who gave the warning, therefore, urged the NGOs and other stakeholders to involve the assembly, especially the Municipal AIDS committee in its activities since it was the duty of the assembly to co-ordinate and monitor their activities.
The MCE expressed the concern at a day's review meeting of the Wa Municipal HIV/AIDS committee in Wa in the Upper West Region.
Security agencies, NGOs and other members of the public attended the meeting.
Mr Yakubu stated that although there had been an increase in the knowledge on the disease, the difficulty now was how people would change their behaviour.
He also commended some NGOs for keeping faith with the assembly and working hard to ensure that the prevalence rate of the pandemic in the municipality was reduced.
The Wa Municipal Monitoring and Evaluation Focal Person on HIV/AIDS, Mr Michael Bayel, challenged all NGOs engaged in anti HIV/AIDS activities in the municipality to regularly submit reports on their activities to the Municipal AIDS committee.
According to him, the decision was to enable the committee to monitor and co-ordinate their activities and properly inform the Ghana AIDS Commission (GAC).
He said the aim was also to get in touch with the GAC regularly in order to continue to receive support from the commission.
Mr Bayel commended the various NGOs and other partners for their immense roles in the fight against the disease and said their efforts had led to the stability of HIV prevalence in the municipality.
He said the HIV prevalence in the municipality in 2007 was 5.8 per cent which dropped to 2.0 per cent in 2008 and 2009.
Mr Bayel, therefore, entreated the various stakeholders to work hard to possibly reduce the prevalence rate to 1.0 per cent.