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Support Children Ward of Upper West Regional Hospital with beds – Pediatric Specialist
The president of the Rotaract Club of the SDD-UBIDS ( left) presenting the items to the paediatrician specialist Dr. Matilda Akanzum (right).
A Pediatric Specialist at the Upper West Regional Hospital, Dr Matilda Akanzum has appealed to non-governmental organizations (NGO) and benevolent bodies to support the children’s facility at the hospital with beds to help alleviate their plight.
She lamented that some of the wards meant to admit sick children were not being used because they did not have beds and said getting beds for those wards would enable the paediatric unit admit more sick children and attend to many more referral cases than it was doing now.
Dr Akanzum made the appeal when the Rotaract Club of the Simon Diodong Dombo University of Business and Integrated Development Studies (SDD-UBIDS) in collaboration with the Rotary Club of Wa donated assorted items to the Paediatric Clinic of the hospital on Sunday.
The items included washing powder, bars of soap, diapers, beverages, cartons of milk, packets of biscuits, toffees and fruit juice drinks as well as boxes of sugar, among others.
She expressed appreciation to the Rotaract Club of the SDD-UBIDS and Rotary Club of Wa for the kind gesture and said it would support sick children at the unit.
She said even though the government provided for the hospital, it was important that benevolent organizations supported with such gestures to enable the hospital to deliver quality service.
The District Governor of the Rotary Club, Mr Victor Yaw Asante in response, promised to foster collaboration with members of the club to see how they would mobilise support to secure some beds for the ward.
“Bringing happiness and putting smiles on the children’s faces is part of our community service; even though they are in the hospitals, we want the children to feel loved, hence the donation”, he said.
He explained that the aim of the Club was to bring together businesses and professional individuals who would pool resources to provide humanitarian services to the less privileged in society and also advance goodwill and peace around the world.
He called on other organizations to emulate the generosity of the club by supporting needy institutions in the region.
Rotary Club is a humanitarian service organization which brings together business and professional leaders in order to provide community service, promote integrity and support the needy across the world.
FROM RAFIA ABDUL RAZAK WA
The Vice Chancellor of the Pentecost University, Apostle Professor Kwabena Agyapong-Kodua, is advocating an intentional conversation about the development and education of the boy child in creating stronger families and societies.
According to him, the boy child must not be ignored in conversations on leadership, education, family stability and national transformation because they are key to national development.
“There is a reason why a boy child must not be denied opportunities like education; he is a future leader. When boys are trained well, society becomes safer and stronger,” he stated.
Apostle Prof. Agyapong-Kodua made the remark at a forum organised by the Church of Pentecost Schools Outreach Ministry in Accra to observe the International Day of the Boy Child observed on May 16.
It was held in collaboration with the Pentecost Men’s Ministry and the Ghana Education Service (GES), and under the theme: ‘Flourish and Thrive: Investing and Unleashing Boys for Strong Families and Communities.’
Leading the discussion, the Pentecost University Vice Chancellor warned that poor mentorship, declining in education, harmful social media influences and emotional neglect have made a lot of young boys vulnerable.
With a lot of the attention switching to the girl child, the boy child, he said was confronted with many challenges including violence, substance abuse, educational decline, emotional neglect and the absence of positive role models.
According to Apostle Prof. Agyapong-Kodua, he noted that boys were turning to social media for direction due to the absence of fathers and mentors to help shape their lives.
“If we are not intentional, social media will mentor our children for us. We are not saying they should not use social media, but they should be guided to access the right information to excel in life,” he stated.
Prof. Agyapong-Kodua urged society to encourage boys to become creators of technology rather than mere consumers.
Contributing, Madam Gifty Asiedu, Director of the Girls’ Education Unit at the GES Headquarters, said the service remained committed to ensuring that no child was left behind, adding that, “supporting the boy child should not come at the expense of progress made in girl-child education.”
“If you focus intentionally on one gender and neglect the other, you create a societal problem,” she underlined.
She said the GES had observed some decline in boys’ retention in school, although the gap between boys and girls was not yet too wide.
“Over the years, attention has been focused on the girl child and we have seen the benefits. However, data now show that the statistics concerning the boy child continue to decline,” she indicated.
She explained that the service was implementing gender-responsive education to ensure that classroom teaching addressed the needs of both boys and girls equally.
Elder Barima Acheampong Sarpong II, Deputy Director of the Pentecost Men’s Ministry and Chief of Asante Asaman in the Ashanti Region, said society needed to critically examine the plight of boys.
“As we celebrate the International Day for the Boy Child, I urge every man to identify one boy child, find out how he is doing and dedicate some time to mentoring him,” he explained.
The programme, attended by educators, church leaders and policymakers, was the second edition following a partnership initiated last year between the Schools Outreach Ministry, the Pentecost Men’s Ministry and the GES.
It sought to improve school enrolment, completion rates and learning outcomes among boys so they could grow into responsible men who would build strong families and communities.
By Esinam Jemima Kuatsinu
Candidates that wrote the 2026 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in Ho Municipality are hopeful of obtaining good grades to make everyone especially their parents and the Regional Minister proud.
The candidates said they had so far sat the examination with focus and integrity after a call from Mr James Gunu, Regional Minister to avoid examination malpractice saying, they expected great performance upon release of results.
Mr Gunu, at the start of this year’s BECE delivered the message during a monitoring visit to some centres in the municipality including Ho Kpodzi EP Basic A School, Mawuli School, Mawuko Girls Senior High School (SHS), and Kabore School.
He urged the candidates to rely on hard work and discipline, warning that shortcuts could jeopardise their future.
“Stay focused and give your best in this year’s BECE – your determination and hard work will pay off. Avoid shortcuts and examination malpractice; integrity matters just as much as success,” he said.
The Minister, accompanied by the Ho Municipal Chief Executive, the acting Volta Regional Director of Education, and the Ho Municipal Director of Education, encouraged candidates to view the exam as a foundation for their academic journey and to celebrate responsibly after the final paper, commending parents, guardians, teachers, and officials of the Ghana Education Service for their support in preparing the candidates.
Candidates at some of the centres Ghana News Agency visited, echoed the call for honesty and high standards.
At Kabore School, Ms Francisca Atsu of Sokode Lokoe MA Basic School said, “The Regional Minister was here earlier to speak to us and also to encourage us. We’ve done our best. I assure him that we will make him and our parents proud.”
At Taviefe SHS Centre, Ms Valentina Sakpla of Taviefe R.C Basic School added, “We are expecting good results to make everyone proud and for our own good.”
Mr David Dotse, Supervisor at Kabore School, hosting 11 schools, with a standby ambulance on site to cater for any health emergency, reported smooth proceedings. –GNA
