Kanshegu (N/R), Feb 24, GNA – Girls from 10 schools in the Savelugu Municipality of the Northern Region have begun a football tournament dubbed: “Girls’ Soccer Clinic” as part effort to end all forms of violence against children especially child marriage in the country.
The Girls’ Soccer Clinic, which would be climaxed on March 3, where the final game would be played, is also to build community unity, and oneness amongst parents and children as well as conscientious parents to be more sensitive to the care and needs of their children.
Alongside the games, personnel from the National Health Insurance Authority (NHIA) would also be at the venues to renew and or register the local people for the health insurance scheme.
The event formed part of the ‘End Violence Against Children’ campaign being implemented by World Vision Ghana, a Christian humanitarian, advocacy and development organisation dedicated to working to transform the lives of children, families and communities, and its partners to fight against all forms of violence against children including child marriage.
Mr. Timothy Akanpabadai, Regional Operations Manager of World Vision Ghana, who spoke during the opening of the Girls’ Soccer Clinic at Kanshegu in the Savelugu Municipality, decried violence against children, early marriage and teenage pregnancy saying they perpetuated poverty in society.
As part of the initiative, pupils from the Savelugu School for the Deaf and the Kanshegu Primary School played the first football game during the opening ceremony where the latter beat the former by two goals to one.
Mr. Akanpabadai said violence against children in the form of streetism, kayayei, early marriage, teenage pregnancy amongst others must be stopped to guarantee their future.
According to the United Nations Children’s Fund, one in every five girls aged 18 to 24 years are married before their 18th birthday, and in the Northern Region, teenage pregnancy increased from 8,824 in 2019 to 9,249 in 2020.
The recent Ghana Living Standards Survey (GLSS-6) also showed that 21.8 per cent representing 1.9 million children aged between five and 17 years, out of the over eight million nationwide were engaged in child labour.
Mr Akanpabadai said measures put in place by the government to address the situation looked good at the national level but implementation at the local level had not been effective.
He, therefore, called on stakeholders to commit to using all means within their powers to engage with the communities, District Assemblies amongst others to ensure accountability on all issues related to child marriage and other causes of violent acts against children.
He called on all stakeholders to build community awareness on existing child marriage laws and formal prevention mechanisms and the impact of child marriage as well as the need for traditional leaders to formulate by-laws to prevent child marriage and hold perpetrators to face the full rigorous of the laws.
He also called on all to promote and support all children, especially those with special needs and teenage mothers to return to school assuring of the continued support and collaboration of World Vision Ghana to make the area and the country a safe haven for children.
Hajia Ayishetu Seidu, Savelugu Municipal Chief Executive described the initiative as timely as the issue of violence against children was a major problem in the area.
She called on community members and all stakeholders to shine a light on issues of violence against children in their communities and speak against such practices to discourage the practice in society.
Madam Maria Abdulai, Girls Education Officer at the Savelugu Municipality advised parents not to neglect their children where they would fall victims to teenage pregnancy and later force them into early marriages.
GNA