The Central Regional Department of Gender has trained 15 male facilitators to nurture and guide adolescent boys in the Assin Fosu Municipality through the Department’s boys’ clubs.
The participants, mostly assembly members, received education on child marriage, sexual and gender based violence, children’s right, sexual and reproductive health, and sexually transmitted infections, among other subjects, to enable them carry out their mandate effectively.
Referred to as “Safe Spaces”, the clubs educate and train adolescent boys from age 11 to 18 on their rights, the laws and dangers associated with common social vices to enable them live responsibly.
The clubs also pay close attention to their education and monitor their progress with time.
The Department is set to establish three more safe spaces in three communities in the Assin Fosu Municipality having established a few in Cape Coast and Elmina.
The exercise is funded by the UNFPA and technically supported by the Central Regional Coordinating Council.
Madam Richlove Amamoo (Mama Awotsu Adzagba II), the Regional Head of the Department of Gender, painted a gloomy picture of the incidence of rape and defilement in the region and emphasised the need to concentrate more on educating men and boys as the main perpetrators.
She explained that adolescent boys, in particular, needed education on the position of the law, an action she believed would drive down the cases of adolescent pregnancy, defilement, rape and all related vices in the region.
She expressed concern about how boys as young as 14 years, confessed to having multiple sex partners and engaging in sexual activities regularly.
“In Elmina, we discovered a 16 year old boy and a 14 year old girl, both students, living together as partners and it was worrying.
“That is why I think it is important to engage these boys to know the position of the law. When you know that if you defile a girl, you will go to jail, will you do it?” she quizzed.
The Gender Director raised serious concerns about single parenting and parental neglect in the region and blamed same for many of the social vices in the Area.
She appealed to parents to pay attention to their children, give them a listening ear, and take good care of them.
Beyond the education and training, Madam Amamoo indicated that members of the spaces were usually the first to be considered for scholarships and other opportunities, urging young boys in the selected communities to join.
She said the Department would proceed to train some 50 traditional leaders on Friday, June 13, to own and nurture the clubs.
She appealed to all stakeholders, including traditional leaders, parents and NGOs to join hands with the Department to protect and give the children a befitting future.
Mr Martin Datsomor, a principal investigator with the Central Regional Office of the Commission on Human Rights and Administrative Justice (CHRAJ), indicated that the concept of human rights was not a foreign culture, insisting the rights must be respected by all.
He noted that children’s rights were critical to their wellbeing, resisting claims that such laws lead the children astray.
Citing the Children’s Act and other relevant legislations, Mr Datsomor who is also the focal person for public education, reminded parents of their mandatory duties to their children including education, good health, and shelter.
“As parents, are we fulfilling these responsibilities? If we allow our children to go wayward, we will bear the consequences of whatever they turn out to be,” he cautioned.
Mr Datsomor said CHRAJ was committed to educating citizens on the rights of children, protecting communities, and enforcing the law.
Mr Ruben Maxwell Bannerman, Registrar of the Effutuakwa Traditional Council, said the rising cases of waywardness were a wake-up call to support the communities.
Mr Issah Abdulai, Assembly Member for Abesewa Zongo New Town in the Assin Fosu Municipality, pledged his commitment to the club and the transformation of its members.
“We have been told that children have their rights but adults are compelled to guide them to become responsible people in future to help build the nation,” he said.
“As parents, we have learnt that children are not our labourers and we should not treat them as such,” he added.
GNA