Fresh supplies of antiretroviral (ARV) medicines are expected to arrive in Ghana within the next three to four weeks as the Ghana AIDS Commission works to address growing concerns over declining stock levels across parts of the country.
Speaking at a press conference on Thursday, July 9, the Commission’s Director of Technical Services, Dr Eric Nana Poku, acknowledged that the country’s HIV medicine supply chain is under pressure but stressed that the situation is being carefully managed to prevent widespread shortages.
“What is happening is that at the Central Medical Store, the stock levels are below the threshold that we always want: six months of stock. And that is a bit of a challenge. In fact, when you go to the regional stores too, we are also told that in some regions the stock levels are lower than what is expected,” he said.
Dr Nana Poku explained that stock levels vary across the country, with some regions maintaining adequate supplies while others are experiencing more significant shortages.
He disclosed that procurement processes are already underway and expressed confidence that additional consignments would arrive within the next three to four weeks.
“Processes have been initiated. And we are being told that we should be expecting some more of the commodities within the next three to four weeks. Hopefully, that will forestall any possibility of stockouts hitting the country,” he assured.
The Commission said it is closely monitoring the distribution of existing stocks to ensure uninterrupted treatment, particularly for pregnant women who require routine HIV testing and treatment to prevent mother-to-child transmission while awaiting the arrival of the new supplies.
Dr Nana Poku also raised concerns over the growing number of individuals advertising unapproved products with claims of curing HIV/AIDS.
He said the Commission is strengthening collaboration with the Food and Drugs Authority (FDA) to clamp down on misleading advertisements and the sale of unauthorised products targeting people living with HIV.
“We are collaborating with them so that we could step up some measures that will deal with these charlatans. It is disheartening,” he said.
According to the Commission, its immediate priority is to stabilise the supply of ARVs, closely monitor stock levels across the regions over the coming weeks, and intensify regulatory enforcement to protect vulnerable patients from exploitation by fraudulent operators.
