Akyem Achiase, Aug 4, GNA - Mrs Stella K. Nanor, the Birim South District Director of Education, on Friday repeated a call to individuals to go in for Voluntary Counselling and Testing (VCT) to know their HIV status.

She explained that knowing one's HIV/AIDS status would not only promote behavioural change among individuals but would also enable the person to seek early treatment if positive.

Mrs Nanor was closing a three-day workshop on HIV/AIDS for 250 teachers drawn from primary and senior secondary schools in the district at Akyem Achiase.

The workshop was organised by the Ministry of Education, Science and Sports under the theme "Teachers, Agents of Dissemination and Change".

Mrs Nanor urged the participants to be active and to contribute their quota towards the reduction of the rate of infection of the HIV/AIDS virus.

Mr Moses K Amakye, the programme co-ordinator, said the time had come when relatives and communities needed not to reject people living with HIV/AIDS.

He said such people must be supported to prevent them from going underground to infect more people.

A video clip on AIDS patients was earlier on shown to the participants to sensitise them on the devastating nature of the disease.