Tema, Dec 15, GNA - Mr. Kwame Brefo-Boateng, the Tema Metropolitan Focal Person for HIV/AIDS, has appealed to religious organisations to wage a relentless war against HIV/AIDS.

He said a collective campaign by civil society to complement government's efforts to combat the menace was important to reducing the spread of the virus.

Making the call at the launch of an HIV/AIDS educational project by the congregation of the Upper Room Assembly in Tema, Mr. Brefo-Boateng said the virus had become a serious public health concern. He took the congregation through various stages of the virus and said the prevalent rate of HIV in the Tema Metropolis in 2009 stood at 2.0 per cent, which exceeds the National prevalence rate of 1.7 per cent. He said he was optimistic that the high prevalence rate in the Tema Metropolis could be reduced considerably through sustained sensitization programmes on HIV/AIDS.

Mr. Brefo-Boateng said the influx of foreigners to the industrial hub to transact business had been identified as one of the major causes of the spread of the virus.

He advised the congregation against stigmatization and discrimination to people living with HIV/AIDS, adding that such tendencies rather worsened the plight of victims.

Right Rev Beatrice Djandu Hedidor, Presiding Bishop of the Upper Room Assembly, reminded the clergy that apart from seeking the salvation of their members, they had a crucial role to play in the fight against the HIV/AIDS disease. Bishop Hedidor said the launch of the HIV/AIDS education project was a manifestation of the church's commitment to the crusade against the virus and appealed to Christians to actively get involved to reduce the prevalence of the pandemic.