By Yussif Ibrahim
Obuasi (Ash), Oct. 9, GNA – Pastor Maxwell Kumi, a Minister of the Christ Embassy Church in Obuasi, is calling for the intervention of the church to stop increasing departure of teachers and nurses for greener pastures outside the country.
He said as key stakeholders in national development, the church could not sit unconcerned as professionals from the two key sectors left in droves at the detriment of Ghanaians.
The Pastor, who was speaking at the Living Right Conference in Obuasi, underlined the need for the clergy to add its voice to calls to reverse the trend before the situation got out of hand.
The Living Right Conference was organised by the Girls Shall Grow, an Obuasi-based Non-Governmental Orgnaisation, which focuses on reproductive health and issues hindering the development of young girls in Obuasi and its surrounding communities.
It formed part of activities to mark the fifth anniversary of the organisation and was attended by participants drawn from basic and second cycle schools in the Municipality.
Experts are predicting a worrying future for Ghana in the wake of a high rate of migration of professionals in the teaching and medical fields.
Early this year, it was estimated that a little over 16,000 Ghanaian teachers applied to the Department of Education in the UK for employment and by June 13, 2023, 10,000 of the applicants with Ghana Teacher Licenses had been certified to work in the UK.
This, according to Pastor Kumi, was worrying and called on religious leaders to speak against the phenomenon and advise government to put in place measures that would encourage trained professionals to stay and work in the country.
“Ghana is a beautiful country with beautiful laws.
It is rather unfortunate that some of us are running away to countries whose laws encourage all forms of homosexuality and polygamy contrary to what the Bible teaches us,” he pointed out.
Madam Louisa Amoah, the Executive Director of the NGO, said teenage pregnancy had been a major social challenge facing the youth, especially in mining communities.
She said it was refreshing that none of the girls who sat for the 2023 Basic Education Certificate Examination (BECE) in Obuasi was pregnant as recorded in previous years.
She attributed the achievement to the tremendous efforts NGOs like Girls Shall Grow and other stakeholders through sustained advocacy and empowerment of girls.
She said her organisation had succeeded in building the self-esteem, confidence, and resilience of the girl child through mentoring programmes, where girls were
provided with guidance and support to help them navigate challenges and make positive choices in life.
GNA