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The Minister designate for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Ms Otiko Afisa Djaba, has called on parents to take keen interest in the development of their children and support them to grow to become responsible adults.

According to her, the global systems and structures, with the proliferation of social media and Information and Communication Technology (ICT), impacted differently on children, and, therefore, they needed good guidance and counselling from their parents and guardians to make the right decisions.

Ms Afisa Djaba made this known when she joined caretakers and children of the Osu Children's Home to share, interact and present foodstuffs and other items to the home, as part of her 55th birthday celebrations at the weekend.

Issues of social protection

She said she was of the view that Ghana's social protection issues had reached a stage where all stakeholders must join hands to ensure that they were given prominence to attract the needed support.

The items presented were 10 bags of 25 KG rice, toilet rolls, five boxes of key soap, four gallons of cooking oil and 10 boxes of biscuits. The rest were four cartons of milk, two cartons of Milo, 20 packets of drinks and four bags of washing powder.

She recounted her commitment to children and women issues over the years, indicating that she had always ensured that the numerous problems affecting women and children were given the needed attention and resources provided to tackle such issues.

Ms Afisa Djaba further mentioned that due to these commitments, she had had the opportunity to travel the length and breadth of the country to see people living under deprived conditions in remote parts of the country and these efforts had brought some relief to them.

She said in view of the fact that the three regions in northern Ghana were highly deprived, there was the need to focus on ensuring that the living conditions of the people were improved.

Appeal

Ms Afisa Djaba appealed to corporate bodies and international bodies to join the ministry to support innocent children who did not have the privilege to enjoy proper parenthood from their childhood.

She assured Ghanaians that she would ensure that issues related to women and children were appropriately taken care of, as had been the practice by her predecessors, and further mentioned that she would continue with projects started by the immediate past sector minister for the betterment of the nation.

The Manageress of the Osu Children's Home, Madam Christiana Addo, thanked the minister designate for the gesture and praised her for her initial support, expressing hope that upon her assumption of office, issues of women and children would be appropriately considered.