Komenda ban funerals over rising teenage pregnancy

The Komenda Traditional Council has banned funerals and wake-keeping over the rising teenage pregnancy in the area.

Omanhene of Komenda, Nana Kojo Kru, says the traditional council will be delegating sub-chiefs and queen mothers to monitor the rate of teenage pregnancies in the respective communities after they hold an emergency meeting on the issue.

Komenda, located in Central Region capital Cape Coast, is bounded on the east by Elmina, on the west by Sham and, on the north by Wasa.

“Wake-keeping and such things we have banned all of them from this area so that [teenage girls] will not attend these events,” said the Komenda paramount chief.

A recent UNICEF report revealed that Cape Coast, the Central Region capital, is leading in child prostitution cases in Ghana.

“We have realized that this [funerals and wake-keepings] is the problem. This is the only way to solve the problem because we can’t control the feelings of people”, Nana Kojo Kru said.

Meanwhile, a UNICEF-PPAG collaboration is set to help reduce child prostitution in the area.

Child prostitutes in the metropolis would be mobilised and given vocational training to help them generate income.

Poverty has been identified as the main factor forcing teenage girls to engage in prostitution.

Source: myjoyonline.com Regional News - 15th September, 2015.

(This picture is not associated with the above article).

A summary of the rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child - Part B

Article 7 
(Registration, name, nationality, care): All children have the right to a legally registered name,
officially recognised by the government. Children have the right to a nationality (to belong to a country).
Children also have the right to know and, as far as possible, to be cared for by their parents.

Article 8 
(Preservation of identity): Children have the right to an identity – an official record of who they
are. Governments should respect children’s right to a name, a nationality and family ties.

Article 9 
(Separation from parents): Children have the right to live with their parent(s), unless it is bad
for them. Children whose parents do not live together have the right to stay in contact with both parents,
unless this might hurt the child.

Article 10 
(Family reunification): Families whose members live in different countries should be allowed
to move between those countries so that parents and children can stay in contact, or get back together as
a family.

Article 11 
(Kidnapping): Governments should take steps to stop children being taken out of their own
country illegally. This article is particularly concerned with parental abductions. The Convention’s Optional
Protocol on the sale of children, child prostitution and child pornography has a provision that concerns
abduction for financial gain.

Article 12 
(Respect for the views of the child): When adults are making decisions that affect children,
children have the right to say what they think should happen and have their opinions taken into account.
This does not mean that children can now tell their parents what to do. This Convention encourages
adults to listen to the opinions of children and involve them in decision-making -- not give children
authority over adults. Article 12 does not interfere with parents' right and responsibility to express their
views on matters affecting their children. Moreover, the Convention recognizes that the level of a child’s
participation in decisions must be appropriate to the child's level of maturity. Children's ability to form and
express their opinions develops with age and most adults will naturally give the views of teenagers
greater weight than those of a preschooler, whether in family, legal or administrative decisions.

Article 12 
(Respect for the views of the child): When adults are making decisions that affect children

Online souce:

http://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview

Okonam M/A School: Pupils learn with snakes in untidy classrooms

Teachers and pupils of Okonam Municipal Assembly school in the Suhum Municipality of the Eastern Region are being haunted by snakes in their crumbling classrooms. 

Apart from the threat of getting bitten by snakes and other poisonous reptiles that invade the classrooms during school hours, both the Teachers and pupils are also forced to use the bush as lavatories due to lack of toilet facilities in the school, a situation which also exposes them to harm.

The school, according to report, was established in 1928 and started from the lower Primary, but after several years it can only boast of an uncompleted Junior High level building.

Management of the school who could no longer depend on government to address their plight has resorted to Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs), corporate bodies and individuals to come to their aid. 

The acting headmaster of the school, Nana Dede–Wadee lamented over the situation reiterating that the school could collapse if government fails to come to their aid. 

Nana Dede–Wadee who could not hide his frustration reiterated that “This wasn’t how the big six planned for Ghana.

The JHS building has collapsed almost 4 years now but there has been no effort to reconstruct it.

The JHS buildings, according to him, were started by the erstwhile Kufuor administration through the Ghana Educational Trust Fund (GETFUND), but have virtually come to a halt after the NPP left office.

Against that background, he called on government and philanthropists to, as a matter of national importance, come to their aid.

However, some of the students speaking to Brytfmonline.com lamented over the deplorable conditions. 

A female pupil, who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “There have been several occasions that we students have to battle with snakes for our lives. Snakes bite us because we live in the same building with them due to the state of the building”.

She continued that, “This situation sometimes makes us to lose concentration in class. We always get frightened whenever the sky is filled with thick heavy clouds. We are scared that the building will collapse on us when the rain pours down. This makes us to put pressure on our teachers to close us because we feel save when we are home.”

Articled culled from;

GhanaWeb Regional News of Wednesday, 29 July 2015

ICT must be necessity in Basic Education – Barton Odro

Mr Ebo Barton Odro, First Deputy Speaker, and Member of Parliament (MP) for Cape Coast North, on Monday stated that Information and Communication Technology (ICT) must be a basic necessity for all pupils at the basic school level.

He said education has gradually moved from the period of limiting teaching and learning to the classroom alone, to a stage of ICT and internet connectivity, and pupils at the basic school level should not be deprived of such an opportunity.

Mr Odro said this at a short ceremony to commission a modern ICT Centre at Pedu and Efutu basic schools in the Cape Coast North Constituency, in a bid to win the hearts and minds of pupils towards developing interest in the study of Science at the basic school level. 

The ICT Centre is expected to benefit school pupils at the Pedu Cluster of Schools, and the Efutu MA Basic School in the constituency.

The 13-seater and 20-seater ICT Centres at Pedu Cluster of Schools and the Efutu M.A Basic School respectively, are also fully connected to the internet.

Mr Odro said with the establishment of the ICT Centres, students would get the opportunity to acquire scientific knowledge, practical process skills and attitudes, through hands on activities and experimentation.

This, he believed, would go a long way to contribute greatly to significant improvement of beneficiary schools and students in the Science and ICT subjects in the Basic Education Certificate Examinations (BECE).

Mr Odro advised teachers to upgrade their skills in ICT, to ensure that the pupils benefited effectively from the Centres.

He urged parents and all stakeholders to ensure effective maintenance and sustenance of the facilities.

He advised the pupils to desist from using technology to engage in vices, like cyber crime (‘sakawa’) and watching pornographic materials, but rather use it for their academic advancement.

Ms. Florence Inkoom, Metropolitan Director of the Ghana Education Service (GES), expressed gratitude to the MP for his contribution to complement the efforts of GES towards the development and improvement in the quality of education within the constituency.

She indicated that the Science Resource Centre would help the Ghana Education Service to achieve its objective of raising a new generation of students with a strong foundation in Science and Technology, and a strong ability for creative thinking.

Shalom Attom, a pupil at Efutu M/A Basic School, expressed joy as he and other school mates had to previously trek to Asapatu, a nearby community to pay GH 40 to have practical ICT lessons.

Article culled from;

GhanaWeb Regional News of Wednesday, 29 July 2015

A summary of the rights under the Convention on the Rights of the Child - Part A

Article 1

(Definition of the child): The Convention defines a 'child' as a person below the age of 18, unless the laws of a particular country set the legal age for adulthood younger. The Committee on the Rights of the Child, the monitoring body for the Convention, has encouraged States to review the age of majority if it is set below 18 and to increase the level of protection for all children under 18.

Article 2 
(Non-discrimination): The Convention applies to all children, whatever their race, religion or abilities; whatever they think or say, whatever type of family they come from. It doesn’t matter where children live, what language they speak, what their parents do, whether they are boys or girls, what their culture is, whether they have a disability or whether they are rich or poor. No child should be treated unfairly on any basis.

Article 3 
(Best interests of the child): The best interests of children must be the primary concern in making decisions that may affect them. All adults should do what is best for children. When adults make decisions, they should think about how their decisions will affect children. This particularly applies to budget, policy and law makers.

Article 4 
(Protection of rights): Governments have a responsibility to take all available measures to make sure children’s rights are respected, protected and fulfilled. When countries ratify the Convention, they agree to review their laws relating to children. This involves assessing their social services, legal, health and educational systems, as well as levels of funding for these services. Governments are then obliged to take all necessary steps to ensure that the minimum standards set by the Convention in these areas are being met. They must help families protect children’s rights and create an environment where they can grow and reach their potential. In some instances, this may involve changing existing laws or creating new ones. Such legislative changes are not imposed, but come about through the same process by which any law is created or reformed within a country. Article 41 of the Convention points out the when a country already has higher legal standards than those seen in the Convention, the higher standards always prevail.

Article 5
(Parental guidance): Governments should respect the rights and responsibilities of families to direct and guide their children so that, as they grow, they learn to use their rights properly. Helping children to understand their rights does not mean pushing them to make choices with consequences that they are too young to handle. Article 5 encourages parents to deal with rights issues "in a manner consistent with the evolving capacities of the child". The Convention does not take responsibility for children away from their parents and give more authority to governments. It does place on governments the responsibility to protect and assist families in fulfilling their essential role as nurturers of children.

Article 6 
(Survival and development): Children have the right to live. Governments should ensure that children survive and develop healthily.

Online souce:

http://www.unicef.org/crc/files/Rights_overview

Second lady advocates digital libraries in Africa

Lady, Mrs Matilda Amissah-Arthur has called for the establishment of regional networks of digital libraries in Africa to accelerate the pace of research on the continent.

She said without any conscious effort to digitize the libraries and archives it would be difficult for the continent to harness its potential for accelerated development.

Mrs Amissah-Arthur was speaking at the fourth International Conference on African Digital Libraries and Archives (ICADLA-4) at the University of Ghana, Legon.

The conference, which was on theme: “Focusing on the strategic framework and road map for Africa’s Digital Libraries and Achieves” aims to provide a platform for African institutions to examine and review the development of national and international policies in relation to Africa.

The two-day forum is being attended by participants from regional and international policy institutions, archives, libraries, museums, government agencies and departments, all levels of educational institutions, funding institutions as well as research centres.

The conference was hosted by the Ghana Library Association (GLA), in collaboration with the Department of Information Studies of the University of Ghana and the Ghana Library Authority.

Mrs Amissah-Arthur also emphasized the need for a coordinating body that would be responsible for ensuring that the network comes in to help the various libraries that have problems with software issues and advice.

According to her, since 2009, there has been three successive conferences on digitization, yet there has not been much improvement in terms of the digitization of the libraries and archives and called on the authorities to do more in this regard.

She stressed the need to put in strategies and see how far the country’s libraries and archives have gone in the digitization effort.

Mrs Amissah-Arthur called for a strategic plan which would allow the regional networks to be divided into a sub-regional groups then upon improvement, move to the regional level for action to be taken.

She also charged the participants to come out with a plan on how to implement a road map of action for digital libraries and archives in Africa.

Mr Felix Kwakye Ofosu, the Deputy Minister of Communication, who represented the Minister of communications, said advances in information documentation continue to open opportunities for mankind and if adequately harnessed, will contribute significantly to the accelerated development of the country.

He said the government has identified ICT as a key pillar and the enabler for the country’s socio-economic transformation, and that, the development of the Ghana ICT for Accelerated Development (ICTD4AD) policy has been developed alongside relevant enabling environment for the promotion of ICT as a catalyst for the nation’s development.

He said the emergence of digital libraries and achieves have created new fields of information documentation, which has led the world of information we live in, adding that, the world thrives on information.

He said the government's fibre optic project would also support the e-government project which will link all Metropolitan, Municipal and District Assemblies to the seat of government.

Article culled from Ghana Web 30th May 2015.

Gender Minister defends Ghana’s child welfare system.

The Gender, Children and Social Protection Minister, Nana Oye Lithur has told the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child that Ghana is in the final stage of formulating the Justice for Children policy which aims at protecting children and guiding their interaction with the justice system.

Nana Oye Lithur strongly defended Ghana’s efforts at improving the welfare of children through legal, policy frameworks as well as institutional mechanisms.

According to her, Ghana has prioritised issues about children since the ratification of the Convention on the Rights of the Child in 1990.

"We are also finalising a justice for children policy to guide interaction of children with the justice system of Ghana and promote the well being of children; prevent abuse, and protect children from harm," she indicated.

She said government has also "prioritised interventions for girls, children with disabilities, children of asylum seekers, refugee children, children of immigrants, children exposed to sexual and gender based violence, children living with HIV and children living and working on the streets."

Touching on the phenomenon of witch camps which have been a haven for many human right abuses, Nana Oye Lithur also indicated her ministry will close down two more witch camps in the Northern Region having already closed one in December, 2014.

"A national conference on witchcraft accusations was also for the first time in our history held in Accra for us to develop a national consensus on the underlining causes and issues surrounding the phenomenon of witchcraft accusation and to chart a way forward for eliminating it," she said.

See more at: http://www.myjoyonline.com/news/2015/May-22nd/gender-minister-defends-ghanas-child-welfare-system.php#sthash.91nNNL2g.dpuf

Ghana’s education remains “robust” - Minister

Ghana’s Education Ministry believes until the methodology used in the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) recent school rankings is outlined, it will be erroneous to conclude that Ghana’s education system is poor.

According to a press statement signed by the Education Minister Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang, the media must be circumspect with their reportage because the full report is not out yet.

Moreover, she reminded the public, the full report surveyed 195 countries and not 76 as being reported in the media.

“Ghana’s educational system remains robust and we are encouraged by the gains we are making and also by the popular verdict by many independent global assessors.

“This is the country that has successively won the three top awards in the West African Secondary School Certificate Examinations for the last five years. Ghana’s educational system cannot be a failed one neither can it possibly be the worst in the world and it is at least gratifying that the OECD report does not say so,” Prof Opoku-Agyemang stated.

Below is her press statement

The Ministry of Education has taken note of media publications regarding a school ranking on Mathematics and Science at age 15 by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) with specific reference to Ghana’s position among 76 countries in the world.

As we wait for the full report to be formally presented at the World Education Forum in South Korea next week to which our Minister of Education Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang has been invited, it is important to be circumspect at this stage and to acknowledge that we do not at this point have details on the methodology and the period covered in this first ever OECD report on school rankings.

We have also noted from the press highlights of the research that only 76 countries out of over` 195 countries in the world were considered for this research. It therefore cannot be said that Ghana’s educational system is the worst globally as has been circulated by sections of the Ghanaian media.

Additionally, Ghana is one of only five African countries that feature in this ranking. It will be interesting to explore how these five African countries thus Ghana, South Africa, Botswana, Morocco and Tunisia made it to these rankings. Are we perhaps being told that these are the best performing nations in Africa? What other interpretations exist to justify the inclusion or selection of these African nations and indeed of the entire 76 nation sample frame?

It is worth pointing out that apart from this OECD report, all other recently published international reports have been highly complementary of Ghana’s efforts at improving the quality of Education. For example, the independent United Kingdom think tank, the Overseas Development Institute (ODI) praised the tangible gains Ghana has made in access and quality in its report captioned “Ghana, the Rising Star: Progress in Political Voice, Health and Education” published in March, 2015. The report notes that Ghana ranks among the highest performing countries in human development in sub-Saharan Africa, especially in terms of health and education.

Similarly, the UNESCO Education For All Global Monitoring Report under access reports that Ghana’s progress between 2000 and 2012 surpasses the averages of sub-Saharan Africa, developing countries and developed countries. Ghana’s KG Enrolment Ratio increased by 74 percentage points compared with the sub-Saharan average of 9%, developing countries average of 22% and developed countries average of 13%.

On the goal of ensuring that all children have access to and complete primary education, the performance trends indicate that Ghana is one of the best performing countries in the world.

The 2014 Global Information Technology Report of the World Economic Forum also highlighted signifiant successes and ranked Ghana 46th out of 148 countries in the world in terms of quality of our education system while in the area of Mathematics and Science, Ghana was ranked 2nd in Africa and 62nd in the world.

Meanwhile, it is important to stress that the Government of President John Dramani Mahama has long prioritized the study of Maths and Science not only to improve scores but to make it more attractive and exciting to study whiles targeting improved transition rates. This is the reason Government has been embarking on a number of bold interventions over the last three years including engaging the services of globally renowned mathematicians Prof. Francis Allotey and Prof. Sitsope Anku. Under this intervention, thousands of maths and science teachers are being retrained to meet Government’s objective.

This Government in 2014 met its obligation for the first time in decades when it provided 12 million core English, Maths and Science text books to meet the required textbook-pupil ratio. Over 50,000 computers over the last two years have also been distributed. The Science Resource Centre Programme is being expanded to cover all public Senior High Schools (SHSs) in the country. In 2014, 100 SHSs across the country benefited from this project to improve on the teaching and learning of Science.

Under the 156 million dollars World Bank supported Secondary Education Improvement Project (SEIP) the Ministry is supporting quality improvement in 125 beneficiary SHSs with emphasis on the teaching and learning of Mathematics and Science.

Ghana’s educational system remains robust and we are encouraged by the gains we are making and also by the popular verdict by many independent global assessors. This is the country that has successively won the three top awards in the West African Secondary School Certificate Examinations for the last five years. Ghana’s educational system cannot be a failed one neither can it possibly be the worst in the world and it is at least gratifying that the OECD report does not say so.

Nonetheless, the Ministry of Education is determined to continue to improve the standard of education and put in place measures to ensure quality teaching and learning at all levels of the educational system in our dear country.

Signed, Prof. Jane Naana Opoku-Agyemang

GhanaWeb - General News of Thursday, 14 May 2015