LOVE LIFE LAUNCHED IN TAKORADI (PAGE 29)

The Abidjan-Lagos Corridor Project (ALCO) will launch a “Love Life Caravan” in Takoradi at the weekend to reduce people’s vulnerability to the HIV/AIDS disease and Sexually Transmitted Infections (STI).
The Love Life Caravan, which has already been launched in Lagos, Nigeria, is expected to pass through five countries namely, Nigeria, Benin, Togo, Ghana and Cote D’Ivoire.
Every stop of the caravan will be marked by mass sensitisation, voluntary counselling and testing for HIV and educational entertainment programmes.
The caravan is also aimed at changing the behaviour of people infected with and affected by HIV/AIDS along the corridor.
It will galvanise support from political, religious and traditional leaders, as well as the media, on AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria prevention and also harness support for people living with HIV/AIDS to reduce HIV related stigmatisation and discrimination.
It will in addition encourage and increase local participation in HIV prevention activities.
It is expected that at the end of the campaign 22,900 items on behavioural change and communication materials, such as leaflets, posters, T-shirts, caps and other gadgets would have been distributed to the general public.
Speaking at a press conference as part of activities towards the launch of the 2008 Love Life Caravan, the Executive Director of Life Relief Foundation, Madam Cecilia Blankson Oduro, said 2.1 million condoms were expected to be distributed along the Abidjan-Lagos corridor along the route of the caravan.
She said three million people would be directly sensitised while 100 million would be reached through media activities.
Madam Oduro said 50,000 people would be counselled and tested along the Abidjan-Lagos corridor during the period of the caravan from May 30 to June 22, 2008 while 30,000 people would be diagnosed and treated for opportunistic infections.
According to her 83,000 people would be diagnosed and treated for sexually transmitted infections.