Book on prevention of teenage pregnancy developed
The Girls Education Unit of the Ghana Education Service (GES), in partnership with the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), has developed a book to guide adolescents in the prevention, control and support of teenage pregnancies in the country.
This initiative is part of efforts to address adolescent pregnancy.
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Titled “Guidelines for prevention of pregnancies among school girls and facilitation of re-entering into school after childbirth”, the book has been distributed to schools in the various districts across the country.
It outlines the various roles of stakeholders (parents, guardians and teachers) and how issues pertaining to teenage pregnancy can be managed.
This was made known at the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection’s (MoGCSP’s) mid-year review of the implementation of the Five-Year Strategic Plan to Address Adolescent Pregnancy in the country.
The Adolescent Pregnancy Strategic Plan, which is a document that provides direction for intervention to address all unwanted and mistimed pregnancies among adolescents in Ghana, was rolled out in 2018 and will run till 2022.
Several institutions and organisations both in the public and private sectors are actively involved as key collaborators, including the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), the Ministries of Education and Health, the Ghana Health Service and the Ghana Education Service.
Since its implementation, there has been a launch of a boys club at Nyankomasi Ahenkro where 200 boys were sensitised to the implications of adolescent pregnancy, a sensitisation programme for 300 boys on Adolescent Sexual Reproductive Health (ASRH), Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV) and the implications of adolescent pregnancy in the Ekumfi District, as well as ASRH and SGBV mentorship for 600 girls in the Assin South and Ajumako Eyan Esiam districts, all in the Central Region.
The Deputy Country Director of UNFPA, Dr Agnes Ntibanyurwa, who read a statement on behalf of the country director said the outfit was committed to improving sexual and reproductive health, mental health, as well as prevention and response to SGBV.
She said in this Covid-19 era, there had been an upsurge in adolescent pregnancies and there was, therefore, the need to increase strength in providing the required information and services.
She said the UNFPA would continue to partner with various stakeholders to implement and track the progress of this Adolescent
Strategy to achieve its goal in the best interest of adolescent girls.
The acting Director of the Department of Gender, Rev. Dr Mrs Comfort Asare, said the Covid-19 pandemic had slowed their work and the gains made over time might be reduced; therefore, there was the need to strengthen efforts and innovative ways to achieve their targets especially in rural areas.
She said it was for that reason the meeting brought together collaborative efforts of partners and stakeholders to safeguard the decent future of the adolescent girl and to mitigate the incidence of adolescent pregnancies.