The Central Regional Minister, Mrs Justina Marigold Assan, has called for the adoption of proactive measures in combating the issue of teenage pregnancy in the region.
She explained that the incidence of teenage pregnancy was greatly affecting interventions put in place in the promotion of girl-child education.
Mrs Assan was speaking in an engagement with queen mothers drawn across the region.
The programme was on the theme “Combating teenage pregnancy: the role of queen Mothers in the Central Region.”
It also served as a platform for the Regional Minister to mark this year’s National Chocolate Day celebration.
As part of the event, the Regional Minister presented a number of items to the queen mothers to show her appreciation to them for their support.
Mrs Assan noted that the region placed third in terms of teenage pregnancy in the country which was a challenge to the development of the area.
She appealed to traditional leaders, especially queen mothers to support the agenda of ensuring a reduction in the rate of teenage pregnancy in the region.
She urged Metropolitan, Municipal and District Chief Executives (MMDCEs) in the region to develop strategies and programmes to curb the rate of teenage pregnancy in their area.
She, however, said they could not execute such agenda in isolation, but must engage with all stakeholders, including queen mothers due to their crucial role in the society.
Mrs Assan further appealed to the queen mothers to support other interventions being put in place to facilitate the transformation of the region.
The Central Regional Director of Education, Mrs Martha Owusu-Agyemang, in her remarks commended the queen mothers for the role they had been playing in the promotion of education in the region.
She, therefore, urged them to be abreast with the educational policies and programmes in the country to ensure the development of the sector.
Mrs Owusu-Agyemang expressed concern about the way girls in the region did not get admission to some of the best Senior High Schools in the region due to their poor performances the Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE).
Additionally, she said a number of the girls got pregnant before completing Junior High School while others also got pregnant in SHS.
Some of the girls in the schools, she explained, engaged in drug abuse and called on stakeholders to help in addressing the challenge.
She appealed to the queen mothers to visit the schools regularly to encourage the girls to take their education seriously due to their status in the society.
Mrs Owusu-Agyemang further called on traditional authorities to refrain from addressing issues relating to gender-based violence at home.
The queen mothers at the end of the programme expressed their determination and commitment in working with relevant stakeholders to address the issue of teenage pregnancy in their respective areas.
FROM DAVID O. YARBOI-TETTEH, CAPE COAST
