News

Nzema East MCE urges youth to choose education over sex, drugs

• By EDMOND GYEBI
• June 02, 2019
• 27

The Municipal Chief Executive for Nzema East, Mr. Frank Okponye has called on the youth in the area to desist from sexual immoralities, drug abuse and other negative practices that are injurious to the realization of their potentials.

He charged the youth to rather prioritise their education and skills development in order to become useful to their families and society. 

Mr. Okponye made this call at a day’s advocacy forum on reproductive health for stakeholders organized by the National Youth Authority (NYA) in collaboration with United Nations Population Fund (UNPFA) and the Western Regional Coordinating Council held at Axim in the Western Region.  

The forum was dubbed 'Sexual Reproductive Health Right' which sought to educate stakeholders especially parents on how they could freely talk to their children about sexuality. 

The MCE advised the parents to encourage their female children to consider building a career before going into relationships to avoid being liability.

The Western Regional Director for NYA, Mr.  Anthony Baah explained that the United Nations classifies persons between the ages of 15 to 24 as youth whereas in Ghana, the age range of a youth is a person between the ages of 15 to 35 years.

Mr. Baah said teenage pregnancy was predominantly high and had therefore become necessary for parents to educate their children on sexual education, adding that, the youth now preferred to learn about sex from their peers. 

He advocated for parents to empower their female children to abstain from sex and pursue careers in order to be become financially independent in challenging times to avoid occasions where girls would sleep with men for material gifts.

Mr. Anthony Baah urged planning officers at the various district assemblies to involve the youth in their budget planning in order to factor their concerns. 

Madam Emelia Owusu, a Representative from the Ghana Health Service and a Disease Control Officer educated the stakeholders on some causes of teenage pregnancy which she indicated are poverty, broken homes, peer pressure, high illiteracy rate on sex and lack of parental affection for children.

To prevent teenage pregnancy, Madam Owusu said it would be best if parents explained to their female children from 13 years upwards on how their reproductive system work, the hormonal changes to be experiences and the  practicing of safe sex, using of condoms and family planning method to prevent sexually transmitted infections (STI's)  and unwanted pregnancy. 

“Parents should establish a cordial relationship with their children so that they can share their problems with them instead of their peers. They will see their parents as their confidante. She appealed to parents draw closer to their female children and not make sex issues a taboo to be discussed.

Source: WatchGhana.Com