The National Commission for Civic Education (NCCE) has engaged stakeholders in the Yunyoo-Nasuan District, to strengthen community support for adolescent  health, promote gender equality and inttakeholders’ engagement, held at the Nasuan Market and Lorry Park in the North East Region, formed part of the “Empowering Community and Youth for Adolescent  Health, Gender Equality, and Preventing GBV through Civic Engagement” initiative. 

It sought to encourage parents and community members to support the health and wellbeing of adolescents, enhance coordination amongst key stakeholders, and educate residents on the harmful effects of GBV on individuals, families and communities. 

The event, organised in partnership with the United Nations Population Fund with financial support from Global Affairs Canada, was attended by a total of 105 people comprising 82 females and 23 males. 

Mr Hamidu Halaru, the Assembly Member of the Nasuan Electoral Area, who was a facilitator during the event, urged parents to take greater responsibility for the upbringing of their children. 

He advised parents to closely monitor the behaviour and peer associations of their children, to detect early signs of risky conducts and intervene promptly. 

He emphasised that parents had a duty to ensure nurture morally upright, disciplined and responsible children, especially girls, to enable them to become productive members of society. 

Mr Mohammed Iddrisu, a Teacher and Guidance and Counselling Coordinator, Nasuan Senior High School encouraged students to embrace discipline, hard work, respect and determination as essential ingredients for success. 

He urged them to avoid social vices that could derail their aspirations and appealed to parents to continue investing in the education and wellbeing of their children, especially girls as they were more vulnerable to societal challenges. 

Mr Abdul-Wahid Madi, who is from the Health Promotion Unit, Nasuan District Health Directorate, spoke about teenage pregnancy and the importance of protecting the rights and future of the girl-child. 

He advised parents against rushing their daughters into marriage, explaining that early marriages exposed girls to health complications, interrupted education, and created financial and emotional challenges for them. 

He reminded the participants that national policy allowed pregnant schoolgirls to continue their education until delivery and called on parents and community members, to work together to safeguard the future of the younger generation.-GNA 

Nana Efua Esaaba, Headmistress of Agona Swedru Methodist Basic School, has appealed to old students, non-governmental organisations (NGOs), advocacy groups and citizens of Agonaman to support the school with metal doors and burglar-proof windows to protect its classrooms from intruders. 

She said the intervention would help prevent suspected wee smokers and other miscreants from breaking into the school and using the classrooms as hideouts and places of convenience. 

According to the Headmistress, the intruders had destroyed all the wooden classroom doors, removed window louvre blades and defecated in some of the classrooms. 

Nana Esaaba told the Ghana News Agency (GNA) in an interview that when she assumed office in 2022, she was confronted with the unpleasant situation of finding human faeces on teachers’ tables. 

She said the situation had worsened over the years, adding that about a year after she took office, unknown persons cut electricity cables connected to high-tension poles near the school, plunging the school and its Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Centre into darkness. 

The Headmistress said the suspects had also broken into her office and stolen government textbooks and other personal belongings, forcing her to permanently close one of the office windows to prevent further attacks. 

She noted that louvre blades installed at the school’s science laboratory, constructed by the Rotary Club, had also been removed by the miscreants. 

Nana Esaaba noted that the timely intervention of some passers-by about two weeks ago prevented suspected wee smokers from removing roofing sheets from one of the school buildings. 

She explained that reports on the incidents had been submitted to the Agona West Municipal Directorate of the Ghana Education Service (GES) for onward transmission to the Central Regional Office and the GES Headquarters in Accra, but the school was yet to receive assistance. 

Furthermore, the Headmistress said in an effort to protect the school’s property, she and her management team had engaged the services of a private security guard at their own expense, but the problem persisted. 

She appealed to police patrol teams from the Agona West District and Divisional Commands to intensify day and night patrols around the school campus to deter criminal activities. 

Nana Esaaba also appealed to the Agona West Municipal Assembly to support efforts to secure the school environment. 

Moreover, she called for the provision of additional furniture for both teachers and pupils, citing an increase in the school’s population. –GNA