Sunyani, 12 Nov, GNA - Mrs Theresa Kufuor, the First Lady on Friday expressed concern about the high prevalent rate of HIV/Aids in the country.

She said the situation was alarming because the youth between the ages of 14 and 19, who constituted the labour force of the country were most affected by the Menace.

The First Lady was speaking at a day's workshop on HIV/AIDS prevention and stigma reduction organized by Mother and Child Community Development Foundation in collaboration with the Ghana Aids Commission in Sunyani.

The programme, which was attended by about 400 participants from the Sunyani municipality, was under the theme: "A person with HIV/AIDS can live a positive life".

Mrs Kufuor said: "The youth who should live to burry us when we are old and dead should not die prematurely for us to burry them", and advised the youth to abstain from pre-marital sex to avoid contracting HIV/AIDS.

She called on the public not to neglect people living with the disease but to have compassion for them and urged traditional rulers to support HIV/AIDS progrmmes to prevent spread of the disease. Nana Kwadwo Seinti, the Brong-Ahafo Regional Minister, expressed regret that Orphan children were on the increase due to the epidemic, thereby placing a great strain on the social system. He said government was doing every thing possible to protect the country's human resource from depletion for national development. Nana Seinti advised the youth against sexual promiscuity adding that Aids is real and "we must not allow ourselves to be infected with the deadly disease".

He urged the participants to educate the public on HIV/AIDS to prevent its spread.