The African Women Leaders Network (AWLN), Ghana National Chapter, has expressed profound alarm over allegations of sexual abuse involving female students of the Obuasi Senior High Technical School (SHTS) and the headmaster of the institution, calling for urgent, thorough and impartial investigation and accountability.
In a statement signed by its Chairperson, Dr Charity Binka, AWLN Ghana said the allegations strike at the very heart of the duty of care owed to every child and raise serious questions about the safety of girls in schools, the exercise of authority and the effectiveness of systems established to protect students from sexual abuse and exploitation.
According to the network, a school must never become a place where girls fear those entrusted with their education, where authority becomes a source of vulnerability or where complaints of abuse are met with silence or inaction.
It stressed that every girl has the fundamental right to learn in an environment that protects her dignity, bodily autonomy, safety and future.
Institutional systems
As an organisation committed to advancing women's leadership, gender equality and the rights and empowerment of girls, AWLN Ghana insisted that protecting children cannot be compromised by status, position, institutional reputation or administrative convenience.
It noted that while allegations must be subjected to fair and impartial investigation, the obligation to protect students is immediate and non-negotiable.
AWLN Ghana has,therefore, called on the Ghana Education Service (GES), the Ministry of Education, the Ghana Police Service and all relevant child protection authorities to ensure the matter receives the seriousness, urgency and independence it deserves, going beyond immediate allegations to examine institutional conditions that may enable abuse, discourage reporting or allow complaints to go unanswered.
It also called for safe, accessible and confidential reporting channels trusted by students, mandatory safeguarding training and stronger oversight for school leaders and teachers on child protection and professional boundaries, and a nationwide commitment to prevention with measurable commitments and periodic reviews.
AWLN Ghana reiterated that the safety, dignity and rights of girls are fundamental obligations no school or institution can afford to neglect.
It said the allegations at the Obuasi SHTS must become a turning point for how Ghana protects children in educational institutions, leading to stronger safeguards and a culture where speaking up about abuse is met with protection and action, not intimidation or silence.
