Does Knowledge Give Power? HIV/AIDS Prevention among Tertiary Students

The 2011 HIV sentinel report for Ghana reveals that HIV prevalence rates in five out of ten regions in Ghana recorded an increase over the 2010 figures. Also, prevalence among young persons aged between 15- 24 years (was used as a proxy for new infections) increased from 1.5 percent in 2010 to 1.7 per cent in 2011. This clearly suggests that the HIV/AIDS situation in Ghana is unstable and therefore has the tendency to increase if measures towards prevention are not intensified. Reducing number of sexual partners, regular use of condom, avoiding sharing needles during intravenous drug use, and HIV voluntary counseling and testing (VCT) are seen as key in fighting the epidemic.
It has been strongly argued that that young people’s inability to reduce risky behaviour can be attributed to the poor knowledge about the HIV/AIDS. Against this background, the University of Cape Coast for the past four years, offers a compulsory HIV/AIDS course for all first year undergraduates students.
Using cross sectional primary data from 600 students randomly selected from the University, the study finds out whether or not the course has influenced students’ behaviour.