RICHNESS the WRITER

Tanzania, along with four other African countries is looking to achieve the '95-95-95' targets set by UNAIDS to eliminate AIDS by 2030. Tanzania's health minister, Ummy Mwalimu, highlights the country's impressive achievements in the fight against AIDS, with 96% of Tanzanians living with HIV aware of their status and receiving necessary treatment and care. Political commitment, and sustained collaboration among local and international partners, including Global Fund, PEPFAR, UNAIDS, and WHO, have been instrumental in the progress made by African countries in combating HIV/AIDS. The HIV/AIDS epidemic has had a disproportionately negative impact on the African continent, with disastrous ramifications for people, families, communities, and the economy. AIDS has had a huge influence on Africa over the past two decades, creating enormous problems but also driving substantial efforts to combat the illness. Africa has the world's highest number of individuals living with H...

Dr kyeremeh Atuahene -Director General, GAC The Director General of the Ghana AIDS Commission, Dr. Kyeremeh Atuahene, is anticipating that the anti-LGBTQ+ bill, if passed will help to address the spread of HIV. He raised concerns about homosexuality and indicated that HIV prevalence among homosexuals is higher than other general diseases. The Director General of the Ghana AIDS Commission described homosexuality as a major problem emphasizing the need for a holistic approach to addressing it. “I want all Ghanaians to also agree with us that the issue of men having sex with men and even women also having anal sex with women is a major problem. Because many men who have sex with men have female partners and HIV prevalence in that group is about 22%, which is even higher than the general MSM prevalence. And so there is potential for their partners who have partners within the general population to spread the virus. Our strategy is to reduce new infections, and therefore we all have to ensu...

The iconic writer's work echoes throughout African literature and social justice movements. The late Ghanaian author, playwright, politician, and activist, Ama Ata Aidoo, at Africa Writes in 2014. | Flickr/RAS News & Events By Tsholofelo Lehaha July 5, 2023   As the saying goes, “legends do not die, they multiply”. This is undoubtedly true when it comes to the late Ghanaian author, poet, playwright, and academic, Prof. Ama Ata Aidoo. Her influence and inspiration was so great, you don't need to have read her works yourself to have likely been touched by her life and career. In Gen Z language, she is goated.  Following Aidoo's death on May 31, 2023, messages of grief and an outpouring of thanks and respect for her work flooded in from some of the world's leading literary figures.  Aidoo, as highlighted by The Conversation, was a central figure among the first generation of African women writers of the post-independence era. After Ghana gained i...

By Edmund Agyemang Boateng Inside the Production Rooms of some sachet water company When a 23-year-old journalist, Thelma Amedeku, sought medical attention at the Legon Hospital in January 2023, she tested positive for typhoid. Haruna Ibrahim Sadik, the physician assistant who attended to Ms Amedeku, advised her to stop drinking sachet water, often called “pure water”. “There are thousands of people producing [sachet] water and you cannot vouch for how purified the water is,” Mr Sadik said. Thelma has recovered but told The Fourth Estate that the sickness traumatised her so much that she is now extremely cautious of the brands of sachet water she drinks. Given the notion most Ghanaians have about tap water being unsafe to drink, those who cannot afford bottled water have turned to sachet water.  This has led to a booming sachet water industry with questionable standards. Unregistered brands The regulatory standards for sachet water are determined by the Food and Drugs Authority (FD...