A research study report published in March 2004 by the late Dr. Dela Attipoe, then the Greater Accra Research Coordinator for HIV/AIDS, showed that the phenomenon of ‘men who have sex with men or MSM,’ in medical parlance, “is real in Ghana with Ghanaians fully involved. It is not a recent phenomenon being visited on Ghana and Ghanaians by ‘whites’ or foreigners”.
The report said reasons that people gave for engaging in homosexuality included economic, pleasure, curiosity and adventure while some claimed that by their biological make-up, they were only attracted to people of the same sex.
Of the 150 gay respondents cited in the report, 43 claimed to have one regular male sex partner while 82 had between two and four regular partners with a few having five or more regular partners.
In order to encourage homosexuals to report cases of STIs for treatment, a number of health-related NGOs have put in place interventions to provide information to MSMs and treat their infections to avoid the spread such infections.
The West Africa Project to Combat AIDS and STI, one of such NGOs, has set up special clinics in some hospitals to cater for the health needs of MSMs, lesbians and HIV persons.
At these clinics, education on ways to prevent the spread of infections and the provision of health services forms an integral part of such special clinics.
