News
WOMEC empowers adolescent girls
Dr Charity Binka, Executive Director, WOMEC
Women, Media and Change (WOMEC), a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), which have empowered several women over the years, has rolled out a project to mentor young adolescents, mostly girls, to take up leadership roles within their respective communities.
Dubbed the Gender Transformative Programming (GTP), a turning point project mentorship and leadership forum on the theme, “Equipping adolescent girls for leadership,” was organised by WOMEC.
It aimed at empowering adolescents to muster courage and speak for their rights irrespective of the issues confronting them.
Students from various schools within the Kpone-Katamanso Municipality in the Greater Accra Region participated in the mentorship event at Sebrepor for the fourth phase of the WOMEC adolescent empowering programme which was held recently.
Ms. Dulcie DelaliAttipoe, Programmes Coordinator of WOMEC said that it was time adolescent girls were empowered to gain self-confidence to report wrongdoing in the communities.
She observed that adolescent girls needed to be mentored at an early age to be responsible leaders in their various fields of endeavours.
According to Ms. Attipoe, policymakers must formulate policy and programmes aimed at protecting the lives of adolescent girls in the country and called on the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MGCSP) to pay critical attention to the needs of adolescents.
MsThelcaWricketts, a lawyer and facilitator at the event, also urged the government to, through its appropriate agencies, implement the various legal framework as far as child rights were concerned.
She noted that many children were facing various forms of abuse in some parts of the country, adding that a lot of advocacy work needed to be done to protect adolescents who were future leaders of the country.
Ms. Wricketts commended WOMEC for organising such a programme for adolescent girls, saying that such events should be replicated in other parts of the country.
Dr. Charity Binka, Executive Director of WOMEC highlighted the need for adolescent girls to aspire higher and take their education serious to become good citizens in society.
She said that WOMEC would continue to offer support for young girls to enable them to harness their talents.
Dr.Binka admonished young girls to always pursue their dreams and desist from immoralacts that would bea hindrance to their dreams.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah
Troubled and anxious citizens in Damongo of the Savannah Region have expressed concerns about the number of young people, believed to be under the age of 18, involved in ‘shisha’ smoking in pubs and drinking spots within the township.
Eyewitnesses say the minors were seen patronising nightlife venues, where Shisha smoking happen in the open.
The situation has sparked renewed public concern over the enforcement of child protection laws and regulations governing the operations of entertainment centres in the municipality and country as a whole.
An eyewitness, who spoke to The Spectator on conditions of anonymity for security reasons, noted that the situation was becoming increasingly common.
“This is not a one-off incident. It is becoming very common, but residents like us cannot openly report or speak about it because our lives will be at risk,” he said.
Under Ghanaian law, minors were prohibited from patronising Shisha.
Public health experts have consistently warned that shisha use exposes users to harmful substances that can negatively affect brain development, respiratory health, and overall well-being, particularly among young people.
The residents believe the alleged incidents point to broader challenges relating to youth supervision, substance abuse, and weak enforcement of existing regulations and have called on municipal authorities, security agencies, and regulatory bodies to intensify monitoring of pubs and entertainment centres to ensure compliance with the law.
In an effort to address the menace, Mr Salisu Be-Awurbi, the Savannah Regional Minister, has led public education campaigns, engaged security agencies, and supported enforcement actions to address the rising use of illicit substances in the region.
Wura Kelly Seidu Boresah I, the Chief of Damongo, has also called on all stakeholders including parents, community leaders, institutions, and young people to actively support efforts to curb drug abuse, warning that the rising consumption of hard drugs poses a serious health threat to the future of the youth in the Savannah Region.
He also cautioned individuals involved in the sale and distribution of illicit drugs to immediately desist from the practice, stressing that offenders will face arrest and prosecution in accordance with the law.
From Geoffrey Buta, Damongo, Savannah Region
Join our WhatsApp Channel now!
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBElzjInlqHhl1aTU27
Dr Theresa Baffour, an advocate for ending violence and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of SAHM SAHW Foundation, has said that society plays a critical and pivotal role in breaking the cycle of domestic violence.
According to her, domestic violence is a major contributor of making women, who are mostly the victims, mentally derailed and unable to engage in economic activities.
She said this when the foundation called on the Ga Mantse, Nii Tackie Teiko Tsuru II, to solicit support for the initiative by the “Strong and Healthy Minds, Strong and Healthy Women” (SAHM SAHW) to combat domestic violence within the Ga State.
The visit was occasioned by the fact that domestic violence cases have become quite prevalent in the Ga communities and is retarding growth.
According to her, the canker was an impediment to national development because the victims were usually tortured and would have to go through series of therapies to return to the right state of mind.
Dr Baffour mentioned that Gender-Based Violence (GBV) places a mental toll on women, and was, therefore, important to break the cycle through comprehensive mental health support, crisis intervention and empowerment programmes in communities with high rates of GBV.
This intervention, she underscored, would help in empowering the denigrated victim of domestic violence to soundly heal, build and thrive.
Dr Baffour added that the initiative would provide holistic, trauma-informed mental health care and advocacy for young women affected by domestic violence.
According to her, the above statement would create safe spaces for healing and equipping them with entrepreneurial skills for renewed hope and empowered life.
The Ga Mantse pledged his support for the laudable initiative to combat domestic violence and also acknowledged the need to address it in the Ga State.
Further endorsement came from Justice Julia Naa-Yarley Adjei Amoah, Chief of Staff at the Office of the Ga Mantse, as she commended the team of SAHM SAHW Foundation for taking a bold step to end the canker in the Greater Accra.
She added that it was a step in the right direction to save vulnerable women from torture, stress and emotional abuse.
By Alfred Nii Arday Ankrah
Join our WhatsApp Channel now!
https://whatsapp.com/channel/0029VbBElzjInlqHhl1aTU27
