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UNFPA urges parents to keep adolescent girls in school, protect them from violence
Dr Emmily Naphambo, Deputy Representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), has urged parents to ensure that adolescent girls remain in school and are protected from all forms of violence.
She said the challenges confronting adolescent girls were multifaceted and required concerted efforts from parents, communities, institutions and development partners.
Dr Naphambo made the call when the Adolescent Girls Programme (AGP) Steering Committee engaged parents in Dadoboe in the Central Tongu District who benefited from the Gender Responsive Empowerment Programme (Great Model Households).
The engagement was aimed at strengthening the capacity of parents in modelled households to support adolescent girls’ access to sexual and reproductive health (SRH) services and create supportive family environments.
Dr Naphambo said there were three key outcomes that would bring satisfaction to UNFPA, UNICEF and their donors, while contributing to Ghana’s development aspirations.
“Parents, you must ensure that the girls remain in school. The second one is that you must ensure that our adolescents and children are protected from any form of violence,” she said.
She said parents must also raise their children to become better than themselves, stressing that the commitment was central to the programme.
Dr Kennedy Brightson, the Director of Family Health and Technical Adviser on Health at the Office of the Vice President, commended participating households for what he described as positive transformation, particularly improvements in relationships between fathers and daughters.
He said some traditional approaches to disciplining children, particularly girls, could create fear and distance between parents and their children, exposing the girls to negative influences outside the home.
Dr Brightson said improved communication and understanding between fathers and daughters could help prevent circumstances that might lead to teenage pregnancy and school dropout.
He also stressed the importance of healthy relationships between husbands and wives, saying a harmonious home provided a better environment for children to grow.
“If the relationship between mother and father is good, then you are better than the children,” he said, comparing a healthy family relationship to watering pepper plants, where the results become visible over time.
Togbe Akliku Ahorney II, the Dufia of Mafi Dadoboe, said the community had benefited significantly from UNFPA interventions since 2023, particularly through training and capacity-building programmes.
He said the training had also inspired the community to establish a nursery or crèche for young children to promote early socialisation while allowing parents to engage in farming and other economic activities.
Togbe Ahorney called for the household training programme to be extended to more families in the district, suggesting that beneficiaries could serve as resource persons to share their knowledge and experience with other parents.
He, however, noted that some challenges and undesirable behaviours persisted despite the interventions, and called for sustained education and community engagement.
The Dufia urged parents to set aside excessive pride and adopt open communication with their children, stressing the need to listen to them while providing appropriate guidance.
He also encouraged children to listen to their parents and teachers, saying the success of the interventions depended on the willingness of young people to embrace the knowledge and guidance provided.
Some beneficiaries shared their experiences, saying the training had helped them improve communication, strengthen relationships, and maintain more supportive household environments. -GNA
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Medical Doctor and dietician, Dr Bernice Korkor Asare, has urged women to take greater responsibility for their lifestyle choices, particularly their eating habits and levels of physical activity, to help reduce their risk of developing breast cancer.
According to her, although, some breast cancer risk factors, such as family history and certain reproductive factors, may not be within an individual’s control, lifestyle choices offer an opportunity for people to take preventive action.
She made this known during a talk on the topic: “Role of diet in breast cancer prevention” organised by Times Ladies Association of the New Times Corporation, publishers of The Ghanaian Times and The Spectator, in Accra on Thursday.
The event themed “Breast Cancer Awareness- Promoting Early Detection, Healthy Eating and Prevention.” 
She noted that having a risk factor did not automatically mean a person would develop breast cancer, but could increase the likelihood of developing the disease compared with someone without that particular risk factor.
“Having close relatives who have had breast cancer, particularly a mother, sister or daughter, may increase the risk, although not everyone with a family history will develop the disease,” Dr Asare opined. Read More.
By Adizatu K. Munkaila
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A group of compassionate friends from Innovation Gospel Impact last Friday visited the management, teachers and learners of the Street Academy in Accra.
The visit was to interact to get a deeper insight into the operations of the Academy that houses hundreds of street and underprivileged children and find ways to support them.
The team was led by Rev. Dr Isaac Apenteng Yeboah, a former Director for West African Mailbox Club and Director for Prisons Support Foundation, and Rev. Dale Sutherland from Washington DC.
The call, according to the visitors was occasioned by reports about the struggles of the Academy despite the occasional support it enjoys from individuals and some corporate entities.
Briefing them, the Founder and Executive Director of the Academy, Dr Ataa Lartey, thanked them for the concern showed, indicating that “this is a major boost for both teachers and learners; knowing that their plight is known by people outside their premises.”
According Dr Lartey, the Academy had planned to undertake a number of project to enhance teaching and learning and also procure facilities for the children with keen interest in sports but had to shelve those plans for lack of finance.
He told the team that their biggest concerns were the monthly utility bills that takes a toll on their finances.
“We have a piece of land we planned to turn into an astro turf pitch to train the younger ones whose interests lies in making a career out of football, however, we have been unable to commence because there is no money now,” he said.
Dr Lartey expressed gratitude to the teachers who have dedicated their lives to training these children, rather than going for well-paying jobs and hoped that with time, their conditions of engagement would improve.
Moved by the plight of the Academy, the group donated a cash amount of Gh₵3,000 to settle its water bills.
They described as unfortunate the conditions of learners and teachers of the Academy and pledged to continuously support their operations to realize the dream to build a better future for the unfortunate children.
The group offered to support the school with its monthly utility bills, feeding and staff allowance and urged the Academy staff to remain in constant touch with them.
The Street Academy is located at the Accra Art Center and offers brilliant but needy the chance to pursue their educational dreams by enrolling them in public schools with others offered training in sports and cultural activities.
By Spectator Reporter
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