A Research conducted by Hope for Future Generation, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) based in Accra has revealed that some children between the ages of 12 and 19 patronise family planning facilities in the Central Region to avoid unplanned pregnancy.
At a media training in Cape Coast, the Project Coordinator of Hope for Future Generation, Madam Mercy Amokwandoh said their visit to the examination centres in some parts of the Central Region during last year's Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) revealed that none of the female candidates was pregnant.
Due to the achievement, the Project Coordinator said her outfit had a meeting with some parents and guardians to commend them for taking good care of their wards, but they revealed that their only option to protect their female children from unwanted pregnancy was to put them on contraceptives since their wards could not abstain from sexual intercourse.
Madam Amokwandoh added that some of the mothers also confirmed that they had to send their wards to heath facilities for nurses and doctors to counsel them to enable them participate in their exams without any pregnancy to further their education to the highest level.
She bemoaned the situation where some young men are being tagged and given all sorts of names when they go to the pharmacy to buy condoms for protection.
When this happens, according to the Project Coordinator, majority of young men may stop using condoms; meanwhile many of these young men are at risk of Sexually Transmitted Infections including HIV/AIDS.
“To minimize these risks and secure a healthy future for adolescents, policy makers, journalists, service providers and advocates need solid evidence regarding the sexual and reproductive health needs of Ghanaian youth,” Madam Amokwandoh stated.
Madam Amokwandoh added that as part of Hope for Future Generation education programmes in schools, especially, Junior High Schools, the organisation aims to educate the youth about the use of condom and has urged the teachers to demonstrate condom use to the pupils.
She explained that “If a child can hear about condom and the demonstration aspect is not there then how do you expect this child who cannot abstain from sex to wear condom and wear it properly.”
Madam Amokwandoh appealed to teachers to be bold and mention all parts of the body to the students when they are teaching adolescent reproductive health, as well as to teach what is in the curriculum since reproductive health education protects the child wherever he or she goes.
She expressed sadness in situations where some youth, especially, young girls had to struggle to cater for their grandparents and as a result would have no option than to sleep with any man who comes their way in order to get money and appealed to parents to be responsible for their children.
Madam Amokwandoh stated that during their visit to some communities they found out that a 13- year-old girl had been impregnated by a teacher and infected with HIV, but the teacher is nowhere to be found.
The organisation suggested to the Ghana Education Service to terminate the contract of any teacher who will sleep with students instead of transferring them.
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