KNOWLEDGE, SEXUAL BEHAVIOUR AND ATTITUDE TOWARDS HIV/AIDS IN TERTIARY INSTITUTIONS IN NORTHERN GHANA

Abstract

Between May and August 2003, the University for Development Studies conducted a Ghana AIDS Commission funded study, as part of a project, aimed at establishing empirical benchmarks to help inform anti~HIVIAIDS programming in tertiary institu- tions of Northern Ghana. The strategic goal of this project was to reduce the impact of the HIVIAIDS menace on the human capital at thepoint~of-training. Emphasis was placed on the knowledge, perceptions, and behavior of members of the communities of tertiary institutions of Northern Ghana. The principal objective was to bring about permanent sexual behavior change. A field survey was conducted in JOrten) institutions. Students, staff and their dependents constituted the respondent-groups. A 10% representative sample (a= 1131) was studied The self-administered survey schedule was employed in data collection. Overall response rate was 80 %. An SPSSx software package was used to analyze the quantitative data yielding statistics such as frequency and percentage distributions as well as measures of significant differences and co"elations. The study reveals that thepopulations of tertiary insti- tutions in northern Ghana are mostly youtliful, with largely unmarried populations, who arefairly educated, and belong to the two dominant religions in Ghana, namely, Christianity and Islam. Though they are quite knowledgeable about HIVIAIDS and hold views that are similar to concerned anti-HIVIAIDS groups worldwide, majority of members of these institutional communities seem to engage in rather "unhealthy sexual behaviors." Though somewhat seemingly insignificant, there appears to be difforences by gender in terms ofperceptions on major beliefs. Findings of this study are only preliminary. Hence, there is the need to interpret them with extreme caution. Conclusions drawn are only tenuous and not definitive.