By Kristodia Otibu Asiedu
Tema, Dec. 10, GNA – The Tema Central Sub Metro, in collaboration with the Ghana Health Service, has commenced its Adolescent Health Advocacy Week with a float through some principal streets and an engaging debate involving students from Presbyterian Senior High School (PRESEC), Tema.
The adolescent health advocacy began with a colourful float, parading through the streets of Tema Communities 11 and 12 and drawing attention to the importance of prioritising adolescent health.
With vibrant banners and placards that bore notices like “Hear our voices,” “Don’t compare us, encourage us,” and “Be part of the solution, not the pollution,” it sets a celebratory tone for a week of dialogue and awareness on crucial health issues among the youth.
Naana Egyiriba Idun-Acquah, an adolescent focal person for the Tema Central Sub District-Tema General Hospital, shared insights into the planning and significance of the advocacy week in an interview with the Ghana News Agency.
She said adolescent health must be a priority for the health service and she added that the focus of the advocacy week was to help create a voice and an open environment for the adolescents in the metropolis.
She stated that as adolescents go through their social and health challenges, they need to be heard; thus, they need a voice. “We need to be heard, and if we need to be heard, we need people to speak for us.”.
She also stated that the advocacy would help create a meaningful platform for students to engage with their healthcare providers.
She added that the Adolescent Health Advocacy Week would set a precedent for prioritising the well-being of the youth in the community.
Some students expressed their joy, saying that apart from the educational benefits, the float they participated in gave them the opportunity to exercise their bodies a bit.
Other students also said it was great that they were talking about their health openly, adding it made them more aware and better equipped to make informed decisions.
Madam Elizabeth Siameh, the school nurse at Presec, Tema, emphasised the role of schools in promoting health education.
She said events like this allowed them to integrate practical health discussions into the students’ daily lives, contributing to their overall well-being.
The week’s highlight was a dynamic debate held in the school’s church auditorium, where some students showcased their intellectual prowess on various adolescent health topics on the topic “Should modern society respond to teenage pregnancy?” Participants from the school debated for or against the topic.
Ms. Priscilla Aidoo, one of the speakers, stated that teenage mothers should be provided with emotional support and empathy from society, as they face social problems.
She also stated that modern society could also respond to teenage pregnancy by raising awareness among children about their sexual and reproductive health rights.
“How would the teenage girl know the consequences of her actions if she is not aware of her sexual reproductive health and rights?” she argued.
Ms. Amagyir Rebecca Akosua, another speaker, stated that if society were to encourage teenage pregnancy, there would be a breakdown in the moral and social values of society; thus, it should be discouraged.
GNA